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Gawilan, Bantiloc to carry PH flag at Paralympics opening
Veteran para swimmer Ernie Gawilan and para archer Agustina Bantiloc will carry the Philippine flag during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, France on Wednesday, August 28.
They will be joined by para track and field athletes Jerrold Mangliwan and Cendy Asusano, para swimmer Angel Mae Otom and para taekwondo jin Allain Ganapin. The parade will take place from the Champs-Elysées to the Place de la Concorde.
In a statement, Philippine Paralympic team chef de mission Ral Rosario said that the team had several discussions on who the flag-bearers will be.
PHOTO COURTESY: PHILIPPINE SPORTS COMMISSION
“Gawilan has been a bemedalled national para swimmer and role model for our apra athletes over the years, while Bantoc is the country’s first para archer to qualify and represent the country at the Paralympic Games,” Rosario said.
“The priority, of course, for the parade are our athletes so that they can experience this memorable moment of their lives,” he added.
A decorated para swimmer, Gawilan is competing in his third straight Paralympics stint after having bannered the country during the 2016 and 2021 edition of the Summer Games, while the 56-year-old Bantiloc is making her debut in Paris.
Bantiloc will also be the first Filipino delegate to see action as she competes on Thursday in the women’s individual compound event at the Esplanade des Invalides archery range.
