THE 2024 Paris Olympics stint of Philippine women’s artistic gymnasts may have ended abruptly, but the lessons they’ve learned are undeniably unparalleled, as they are the first set of Filipina gymnasts in 60 years.
Levi Jung-Ruivivar, Emma Malabuyo, and Aleah Finnegan took a proud bow at the Bercy Arena after falling short of their goal of carrying the Philippine flag and maybe winning a medal.
Initially, Ruivivar scored 11.866 points on balance beam, 12.433 points on floor exercise, 13.200 points on uneven bars, and 13.600 points on vault, totaling 51.099 points.
Malabuyo, on the other hand, scored 12.233 points on the balance beam, 13.100 points on the floor exercise, 12.500 points on the uneven bars, and 13.600 points on the vault, yielding the same average of 51.099 points as Ruivivar.
Meanwhile, Finnegan was a bit apart from the rest. She got 11.466 points on the balance beam, 12.733 on floor exercise, 12.566 on uneven bars, and 13.733 on vault.
The bitter end
After the Subdivision 3 qualifiers, the three Filipina gymnasts finished 28th, 29th, and 33rd, respectively. However, once all subdivisions were completed, things took a turn for the worst.
Once all subdivisions were done, Ruivivar ended 40th, Malabuyo 41st, and Finnegan 47th. A spot that eliminated the three gymnasts, as only the top 24 all-around performers will advance to the Final.
Furthermore, the three gymnasts were unable to qualify for any of the apparatus finals in which they competed because their scores were insufficient to place in the top eight of the competition.
Still a history
Despite failing to advance to the finals, Malabuyo, Ruivivar, and Finnegan have already achieved history by breaking a 60-year drought for female Filipino gymnasts at the Olympics.
Evelyn Magluyan and Maria-Luisa Floro were the last Filipina gymnasts to compete at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Meanwhile, Finnegan is still proud on how they performed despite the early exit.
Photo Courtesy: International Gymnastics Federation | Facebook
“I think it was a mix of finishing the competition, so letting that sink in first,” said an emotional Finnegan. “You know, we finished all the way through, and on the back side, being really proud of myself for how I did today.”
“But there’s also that side, [like] a little disappointed in myself. Just because I know what I’m capable of, but we’re at the Olympics. So no matter what, I’m walking out here with my head held high. I’m just so proud to represent the Philippines on this stage.”
Currently, US star Simone Biles leads the event with 59.566 points, having dominated the vault (15.300) and floor exercise (14.600). While finishing second on the balance beam (14.733), and tenth on uneven bars (14.433).
As of this writing, the Philippine team had only 18 athletes remaining in contention after fencer Samantha Catantan lost to world No. 2 Arianna Errigo of Italy in the women’s foil Round of 32 at the Grand Palais.
