POC gives P11 million in bonuses to Vietnam SEA Games medalists

MANILA, Philippines – More incentives await the Filipino medalists in the 31st Southeast Asian Games.

The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) said on Friday, June 3, it will hand out its own cash bonuses totaling more than P11 million to the Philippine delegation that brought home 52 golds, 70 silvers, and 105 bronzes from the regional sports showcase. (MEDAL TALLY: 31st SEA Games)

“We may not have retained the overall championship, but what we saw in Vietnam was a fighting Team Philippines,” said POC president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino.

Led by star gymnast Carlos Yulo, the Philippines finished fourth overall in the 11-nation event but breached the 50-gold plateau for the first time since the 1993 edition, excluding the country’s 2005 and 2019 hosting of the SEA Games.

Gold medalists in individual events will receive an extra P100,000, while P30,000 will go to silver winners and P10,000 to bronze medalists. The incentives for team events will appropriately be calibrated. 

The development came just days after President Rodrigo Duterte doubled the incentives of Filipino medalists in the biennial meet.

The law states that individual SEA Games gold medalists will receive P300,000, while silver and bronze winners will pocket P150,000 and P60,000, respectively.

Yulo will receive the biggest financial windfall after emerging as the most bemedaled Filipino athlete in Vietnam with five golds and two silvers in the men’s artistic gymnastics. 

“The POC will always recognize the efforts of the athletes who trained, prepared and fought hard in Vietnam despite the circumstances,” Tolentino said. 

Tolentino noted that the incentives were made possible by the POC’s partners – Manuel V. Pangilinan’s MVP Sports Foundation, Ramon S. Ang’s San Miguel Corp., and Charlie Gonzales’s Ulticon Builders Inc.

Aside from the financial rewards, Duterte also awarded each medalist the Order of Lapu-Lapu Kamagi medal for their sacrifice and significant feat after bringing international honors to the country. – Rappler.com