Flag bearer inspired by ill brother

MANILA, Philippines - Weightlifter Patricia Llena, one of nine Filipino athletes competing in the Singapore Youth Olympics on Aug. 14-26, is inspired by her older brother Mirko to win for flag and country.

Llena, 16, has made it her mission in life to excel for her brother who is afflicted with cerebral palsy. Mirko, 17, is unable to speak, can hardly walk and has the mind of a two-year-old. She is enrolled as a freshman in pre-med at Wesleyan University in Cabanatuan and plans to advance to medicine proper and become a pediatrician.

“Patricia wants to use whatever incentives she gains in representing our country for her brother’s care,” said her father Leonard, a former national weightlifter who was an entry in the 82-kilogram division at the 1991 Southeast Asian Games. “My wife Cynthia gave up our rice business in the public market to concentrate on taking care of Mirko. Our daughter Leah who is 14 lost her allowance from the Philippine Sports Commission because she’s not an elite athlete although she has potential. I am a full-time Baptist pastor and Patricia’s coach. We’re consolidating our resources to give Mirko the best care possible. What he needs is round-the-clock attention.”

Chosen as the country’s flag bearer in Singapore, Llena never expected the recognition.

“I’m very happy because it’s a big honor for me to be picked as flag bearer,” said Llena. “It’s extremely difficult to win a medal in the Youth Olympics because I know how tough the opposition is and every one went through many qualifying competitions. All I can promise is I will give it my all to the best of my ability so that I can bring back a medal for our country.”

Llena’s father revealed that she held back her tears when chef de mission Mark Joseph announced she would carry the flag at the Singapore opening parade during a recent press conference. But she burst into tears and literally jumped for joy in a private moment with her father after the media gathering.

Although Llena is entered in the 63-kilogram division in Singapore, her idol is Beijing Olympic superheavyweight gold medalist Matthias Steiner who was inspired to win by the memory of his late wife Susann. It was Steiner’s promise to strike gold as his wife lay dying in a hospital after a car crash. Steiner, an Austrian, switched citizenships and competed for Germany in Beijing.

Llena’s father said to compete in the Olympics is her dream. “I see Patricia competing until she’s 25 to 30,” he said. “She’ll be ripe for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Of course, she’ll try to make it to London in 2012 if only for the experience. There is no age limit in weightlifting so you can imagine the seniors dominating in the Olympics. What makes Patricia outstanding is her dedication to the sport and her discipline. You never force her to train. She does it willingly. No complaints. Sometimes, I tell her to do just light training but she’ll insist to do a little more. She jogs for about 20 to 30 minutes three or four days a week as a routine. As for her diet, she controls her weight by eating healthy. If only we had the budget, we could give her more nutritious food but our funds are limited so we make do with what we have.”

In the way of making weightlifting a life-long mission is Llena’s other dream of becoming a pediatrician to aid special children like Mirko. She will eventually decide what career path to take.

A powerlifter and weightlifter, Llena trains for both sports with complementary exercises. Weightlifting consists of the snatch and clean-and-jerk while powerlifting is made up of the squat, deadlift and bench press. Weightlifting is an Olympic, Asian Games and Southeast Asian Games event – powerlifting isn’t. Llena has garnered honors in both sports.

“Powerlifting enhances weightlifting,” said her father. “They complement each other. For instance, in the clean-and-jerk, it would help if you’ve got a background in the squat to give you a big push. There are seven basic types of training exercises for weightlifting and one of them is the benchpress. It’s about pulling and pushing to maximize your lift.”

After the Youth Olympics, Llena is set to compete as the country’s only representative at the World Junior Powerlifting Championships in the Czech Republic on Sept. 1. She will be accompanied by Col. Tony Taguibao and her father.

“It’s an important competition because of the world level,” said Llena’s father. “I’ve already advanced over P13,000 for visas and travel insurance. Our hope is the PSC will support Patricia in this event.”