MANILA, Philippines – For someone who experienced living in a makeshift shelter covered by a mere tarpaulin to owning a posh condominium and another house and lot now, Tokyo Olympics boxing silver medalist Nesthy Petecio has gone a long way.
Petecio will receive a P10-million worth condo unit from Suntrust Properties, Inc, a subsidiary of Andrew Tan’s Megaworld, in her hometown Davao City for her Olympic feat.
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She was also promised a P2.5 million house and lot by Ovialand in Candelaria, Quezon even before she entered the gold medal match that eventually resulted to a loss to Japanese Sena Irie yesterday.
It also goes with an assured P17 million incentive — P5 million each from government, the Manny V. Pangilinan Sports Foundation (MVPSF) and San Miguel Corp.’s Ramon Ang and P2 million from Deputy Speaker Mikee Romero.
And the Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Air Asia also pitched in with the former giving Petecio free 60,000 miles flight per year for life and the latter five years of unlimited flights.
More could be coming.
It was less than what weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz received for delivering the country’s first Olympic gold but it should be enough to set Petecio for life.
“I realized that the reason I’m into boxing is because of my family. I want them out of poverty,” Petecio, who hails from Tuban in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur before resettling in Davao City for good, once told The Philippine STAR.
“I experienced living in a shelter with only a tarpaulin to cover us. I’m not ashamed of it because I know in my heart that God is watching us and my day will come,” she added.
That day has come.