SPONSORSHIP SPEECH OF SENATOR RISA HONTIVEROS ON SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 798 HONORING HIDILYN DIAZ FOR PH's FIRST EVER OLYMPIC GOLD
July 27, 2021

Buong puso at galak kong inaakda ang Resolution No. 798 na nagbibigay pugay kay Hidilyn Diaz para sa kanyang gold medal sa Tokyo Olympics. I share in everything my colleagues have said about her grit, her tenacity, her determination in the face of personal adversity. But I also want to emphasize one thing: ang unang nagbigay sa atin ng karangalan matapos ang halos isang daang taon ay isang babae.

In a country where sports has been associated with men delivering knock-out punches at the ring (and yes, we wish our dear colleague Senator Manny well in his fight next month) or buzzer-beating three point shots by 6-foot young lads, we can now tell our little girls - pwede kang mangarap. Posible ang gold medal. Little girls with big dreams can become women of vision who will carry our flag to victory.

Kay Hidilyn Diaz, maraming maraming salamat sa iyo. Salamat na hindi mo sinukuan ang Pilipinas kahit madaming beses mo naramdaman na hindi ka namin sinamahan sa iyong paglalakbay. Salamat dahil hindi mo kami binigo, kahit madaming beses mo siguro naramdaman na binigo ka namin. Salamat sa kasiyahan at liwanag.

Mabuhay ka. Hidilyn Sakalam. Babae Sakalam.