ATHENS, Greece -- With the demise of the medal hopes of the boxers, the awesome task of winning the Philippines' first ever Olympic gold medal -- or any medal at all -- has fallen on the shoulders of the three Filipinos in taekwondo in the 28th Olympic Games.
But the enormity of the task did not seem to daunt Mary Antoinette Rivero, Tshomlee Go and Donald Geisler III as they went about their daily practice Sunday at the Olympic Village under the watchful eyes of head coach Jesus "Jobet" Morales III.
The team went through their daily routine of honing up their techniques and limbering up with kicking exercises.
"Nothing heavy," said Morales.
Go and Rivero will have their own private cheering squad when they see action at the Faliro Sports Pavilion. Members of their respective families were to arrive Monday to root for them.
Arriving were Rivero's parents and two brothers and Go's mother and brother Jefferthom, who is also a member of the taekwondo national pool.
Go will see action first, competing in the men's under-58 kg division on Thursday while Geisler and Rivero go to battle on Saturday in the men's under-80 and women's under-67, respectively.
"Now, more than ever, is our best chance to win a gold," said Geisler.
No one is in a better position to make such an assertion and has a better chance of winning that elusive gold than Geisler, the 25-year-old veteran of the Sydney Olympics and six World Cup competitions.
Only remnant
The only remnant of the four-man Philippine team that competed in Sydney in 2000, Geisler says he is better prepared now than he was four years ago. He and the two other Filipino taekwondo jins underwent a two-and-a-half month training in South Korea, birthplace of the sport, before coming to Athens.
The experience has made Geisler one of the darkhorses in his division where he considers entries from the United States, Iran and Turkey as his toughest rivals.
Olympic first-timers Go and Rivero may be younger and less experienced, but they are no less determined to win their respective divisions.
"Young and determined" was how the 16-year-old Rivero described herself in the biography found in the Olympic information service.
"They may underestimate me because I'm young. But I'm equally determined as the others. My strength is actually my determination to win," said Rivero, who is living out the Olympic dream she nurtured most of her young life.
Her other strength is her lower body. The team's Korean coach, Kim Tae Hyung, has turned her legs into an asset in a sport that puts premium on leg action.
The 5-foot-8 youngster, winner of the gold in last year's Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam, will be fighting in the women's under-67 kg class where one of the dreaded Koreans, Sun Hwang Kyung, is entered.
She lost a close decision to the Korean in the final of the Asian junior championship in Korea.
"She's here and she's going to be tough," Rivero said. Otherwise, she considers her medal chances in Athens as "OK lang.”
Tough schedule
Due to her tough taekwondo schedule, which included traveling to competitions, Rivero had to enroll in the home study program of Angelicum College, where she is now on her third year in high school. The program affords students like her to study at their own pace through modules while they're away from school.
Go will have the most difficult task of all. He will be up against the two-time world champion from Taiwan and the defending Olympic champion, a Greek.
It will be tough fighting Michalis Mouroutsos, the hometown hero, but Morales says Go can beat him. "Kaya yun (He can do it)," said Morales.
Go, 23, was the first Filipino to qualify for the Athens Games, having made it in December in Paris by winning in the world taekwondo qualifying tournament. He won the bronze in the Asian Games in Busan two years ago and was the silver medalist in the 2001 world championship in Vietnam and the Asian championship in 2000 in Hong Kong.
Key to victory
He said the key to victory, as far as he is concerned, is to stay focused and calm and to learn the opponent's moves before "I make my moves."
Geisler and Rivero took the last bus to Athens, earning their tickets in the Asian regional qualifying tournament in Bangkok last February.
In that tournament, they made it to the final and, having clinched their Olympic berths, opted not to fight for the gold to prevent injuries and avoid the scouts of foreign teams who were already videotaping their fights. They threw in the towel at the start of their final bouts and settled for the silver.
Athens 2004 may be the best and final chance for Geisler to win an Olympic medal. Having suffered a heartbreaking first-round loss in Sydney, he has vowed to prepare and do better this time.
But he has to hurdle favorites like Steven Lopez of the United States, who won the gold in a lighter class in Sydney and has won the world championships in two heavier categories since then.
In Athens, Lopez has moved up to a heavier class that puts him in the same division as Geisler.
He said he's more determined now and has promised "to give it my best shot."