Specially-abled swimmer eyes Olympic glory

MANILA, Philippines - He has been wearing a hearing aid since the age of 5, but the handicap hasn’t prevented Lester Lagos from chasing his dreams.

Lagos was one of the 15 cited by businessman Manny Pangilinan and Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion as one of the top 15 Go Negosyo awardees. It is a much-deserved honor for the 28-year-old graduate of multimedia arts at the College of St. Benilde.

While in school, he took every opportunity to improve his communication skills, through lip reading and speaking skills. He is now a deaf who can speak.

He completed his O-level, the Philippine equivalent of a college qualifying exam, in Singapore where he was raised.

Lagos now owns his own company, the “Urban Frog”, taken from a fairy tale about a frog that became a prince, an appropriate name for a “transformation that resulted in joy.”

He specializes in printed graphics and hires highly skilled professionals who, like him, are deaf.

Lagos has another challenge in life – to etch a name in sports. A serious swimmer, Lagos yesterday called up the Philippine Swimming League to ask for a coach who could train him for the seventh Asia-Pacific Games in Seoul, South Korea and, eventually, the Olympics.

“This is a challenge in my life, and I want to win in this competition,” said Lagos, who specifically had requested for personal training under PSL founder Susan Papa.

Papa, a former Olympian, readily obliged.

“I want to help him reach his dream and I will help him be the best he wants to be,” said Papa.

The first on the training program will be to improve the 30-second time of Lagos in the 50m freestyle. From there, Papa will have to teach her new student how to react to the bark of the starting gun, which he must “read” from the side of the pool.

There could be problems in this and other aspects of training, but Lagos isn’t discouraged. Neither is Papa.

“Some say being deaf is a disability but Lester disagrees. He will hurdle this new challenge in his life. I want him to go as far as the Olympics,” said Papa, who will train Lagos for two months.