De Vega bemoans lack of sprint champions
Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Manila
Lydia de Vega still owns a SEA Games record, but she wishes someone would come along and take it away from her.
On Sunday, the undisputed queen of the track in the 1980s watched the Philippines secure a one-two finish in the women's long jump.
Despite the success of her compatriots, she admitted she was still longing for a successor, not only from her country but in the region. Her 100 meter SEA Games record of 11.28 seconds, set at the 1987 Games in Jakarta, still stands today.
"Yes, I'm happy with the Philippines' athletics perfomance, but the only thing is that we don't have the best sprinters like me. That is the only frustration I have because I want to see Filipino athletes follow in my footsteps," the two-time Asian champion told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the track and field competition at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
De Vega, now a 40-year-old mother of two daughters, complained about a lack of talent as well as half-hearted government support for sports development.
"We don't have a lot of talent but the main problem is that we lack the support of the government. We have to send athletes abroad, bring good coaches, organize seminars on good techniques and training methods," she said.
De Vega said she still had confidence that Filipinos and the region's athletes would be able to compete with their Asian peers from Japan and China, which has emerged as the continent's sports powerhouse.
"Why not? We have done it before. We probably haven't found the right athletes for the SEA Games event. That's the problem."
She came from an athletic family, with both parents involved in sport. "My father specialized in jump events and my mother was a sprinter. I have the blood of athletes."
She took up running at the age of 12, with a teacher encouraging her to pursue the sport.
Her father provided focused guidance for her in grooming her skills, and sports administrators began to take notice of her.
After winning the 200 and 400 meters at the SEA Games in Manila in 1981, she came to international prominence at the Asian Games a year later. In 1986, she became the first woman to win back-to-back gold medals in the 100 meters at the Asiad.
In 1987, she reigned in the 100-meter dash in Jakarta, besting the record of track legend PT Usha of India.
"It was tight competition against PT Usha at the time," she remembered.
A consultant with the Philippines Sports Commission, de Vega expressed regret that the Games have been marred by tardy preparation.
"We're facing too many problems. But I think at the beginning, it was the budget. We had little time to work on everything because the budget (from the government) did not arrive on time."
"Now the Games have already started. We are getting better every day."