Peping: early preparation will be key to win Phl's 1st gold

MANILA, Philippines -- After winning his third term as Philippine Olympic Comittee president unopposed, Jose "Peping" Cojuangco, Jr. sets his sights on preparing this early for the 2016 Olympics set in Rio de Janerio, Brazil.

"Our next goal now is the next Olympics, we'll never know, we might win our first gold medal there," said the 78-year-old Cojuangco, who garnered 32 of the 43 votes cast in a polling done at the Alabang Country Club Friday.

Cojuangco specifically mentioned preparing and training early and identifying athletes who have strong potential in competing and perhaps winning medals in the qudrennial multi-sports event.

"Early preparation will be key," he said.

And the former Tarlac Congressman has all the reason to be earnest and punctual in the Phl's Olympic preparation as the country never won a single medal there since he took over as head as the country's Olympic movement eight years ago.

There was actually a gold medal in wushu in the 2008 Beijing Games but the sport wasn't considered a regular sport so it wasn't really officially counted.

Like in Beijing, the countrt also produced a big fat egg in the London Olympics in August this year.

Cojuangco is also hardpressed in bouncing back from three disappointing finishes in the last three Southeast Asian Games when the country finished either fifth or sixth places in the biennial meet.

On his first year at the POC, the Phl emerged the overall SEAG champion after it amassed 113 gold, 84 silver and 94 bronze medals on home turf.

It was a downward spiral from there for Phl sports under Cojuangco after the country wound up sixth with a 41-91-96 (gold-silver-bronze) medal harvest in 2007 in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, fifth  with a 38-35-51 harvest in 2009 in Laos and sixth again with a 36-56-77 count last year in Indonesia.

But with a fresh start and a brand new plate, Cojuangco remains optimistic.

"The winner here is Phl sports," he said.

Monico Puentevella, who lost to triathlon chief Tom Carrasco in a very closely fought duel for the POC chairmanship, for his part, said it was a fight worth fighting for.

"I congratulate them, Peping Cojuangco got his way," said Puentevella. "We fought a good fight against insurmountable odds, it was really difficult running without a presidential candidate."