ATHLETES who have secured their slots in the Paris 2024 Olympics have one goal: to bag a gold medal.

They may be heading on the same path, but each began their journey differently.

While a career in the sports industry was a childhood dream for some, others initially did sports for fun—like Aira Villegas, a Pinay boxer set to debut in the Olympic boxing ring.

A hobby turned into a passion

Villegas, who hailed from Tacloban, became interested in boxing at the age of nine, thanks to her older brother Rominick, a former boxer who introduced her to the sport and trained her. At the time, Villegas was only invested in boxing for fun.

“Hindi siya ganon ka-serious eh. Parang learning, training lang kasi my brother [was] a boxer,” she told One Sports. “For me, boxing is for libangan [at] for safety. Syempre iba na yung panahon ngayon, so, mas okay nang marunong ka manapak.”

So, what made her pursue a boxing career? Villegas had a simple answer: follow her brother’s footsteps and support their family through boxing.

“Bata pa [lang] po talaga ako ina-idolize ko na yung brother ko. Sa bahay [lagi kong] nakikita yung pictures niya, trophies, medals,” she said.

Adding to her motivation was when she learned that her brother earned income from boxing, which Rominick used to support his family and in school.

“Hindi na siya humihingi sa magulang namin ng money for school, and then nagbibigay din siya ng money kay mama. Parang mas lalo po ako [na-motivate] na parang gusto ko po talagang i-try yung boxing,” shared Villegas.

In an interview with GMA’s “24 Oras,” Villegas said that her brother has dreamt of becoming part of the national boxing team but it didn’t happen because of his fractured hand. Rominick instead passed on his dream to his younger sister, which the latter fulfilled.

Challenging bouts

While Rominick had his last boxing fight in 2012, it was when his younger sister jumpstarted her boxing career as a national team member.

But building a career in the boxing scene was not easy for Villegas as she dealt with losses—and even an injury—in her bouts.

In 2019, Villegas bagged a bronze medal in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games held in the Philippines, after she lost to Thailand’s Nilawan Techasuep in the 54kg women’s bantamweight division.

Fast forward to 2023, the Tacloban boxer had to deal with a hamstring injury, which led her to miss the 32nd edition of the SEA Games.

“Last year din po, marami din po [akong] pinagdaanan, tapos [may] self-doubt din po kasi halos [injured ako] before Asian Games pa. January pa lang may injury na [ako]. Tapos nung nag World Championship ako, [may] injury hanggang umatras po ako nung SEA Games. Tapos marami po akong na-miss na competition,” she told reporters in June.

Villegas competed in the women’s 50kg round in the 19th Asian Games in China, where she made an early exit after losing to Yesugen Oyuntsetseg of Mongolia.

In an interview with One Sports in 2023, the Pinay boxer said she would use this defeat as her fuel to improve her skills and redeem herself. 

“May mga bagay na kailangan pang i-improve. Sa susunod, babawi,” she stressed.

Olympics debut

True to her words, Villegas made a strong comeback to the boxing scene as she sealed a slot in the upcoming Olympic Games, along with five other Pinoy boxers Eumir Marcial, Nesthy Petecio, Hergie Bacyadan, and Carlo Paalam.

Villegas earned her Olympics ticket after knocking down Bulgaria’s Zlatislava Chukanova with a 5-0 win in the 50kg quarterfinals of the 1st Olympic Qualifying Tournament in March.

Looking back on her boxing journey, the athlete had a simple message to her younger self who initially did the sport for fun:

“Thank you kasi naniwala ka sa sarili mo at pinagpatuloy mo kung ano yung gusto mo, tapos hindi ka nakinig sa ibang tao sa mga doubts nila sa’yo,” she said in a One Sports video.

“Sobrang thank you kasi nandito na tayo. Hindi natin ine-expect na mag-o-Olympics tayo, pero ito mag-o-Olympics na ako,” she added.

Boxing events at the Paris 2024 Olympics will kick off from July 27 until August 10. Athletes will compete in 13 categories: seven men’s and six women’s.

The Philippines has 14 medals as of Tokyo 2020: one gold, five silver, and eight bronze. The country’s first Olympic gold medalist was Pinay weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz.

Will this list of accolades grow? Filipinos will find it out once the Paris 2024 Olympics begins on July 26.