SEAG No. 1 ready vs world’s best

Instead of the Philippine flag for the opening ceremonies, Miguel Molina will carry the title as the Best Male Athlete of Southeast Asia when he competes in the Beijing Olympics next week.

The 23-year-old tanker, winner of four gold medals in the 2007 SEA Games in Thailand, yesterday vowed to do his best when he leads a crack team of Filipinos in the swimming and diving competitions in Beijing.

Molina said he’s ready to swim against the best in his favorite events, the 200m freestyle, 200m breaststroke and 200m individual medley.

He plans to swim his own race. He said it’s the only thing to do.

“What I care about is what I’ll swim. If I swim fast and finish last then that’s all I can do. It’s not really how the guy left or the guy to my right swims,” Molina said during Wednesday’s media day.

“If I finish 50th, 40th or 30th it’s up to me,” he added.

Molina even said this could be his last race – in the Olympics.

“I will treat it as my last race. Maybe I can still swim in Laos (for the 2009 SEA Games),” said Molina.

“But at some point I think I have to go on with my life. Or get a job. It all depends on how I swim in Beijing whether or not I will continue swimming,” he added.

Being considered as the flag-bearer of the RP Team, Molina said, is already a privilege. Again, he said he doesn’t mind handing over the task to world champion Manny Pacquiao.

“It’s already a privilege being considered but Manny is the idol of many and he’s the symbol of the best the Philippines can offer. It’s an honor to be chosen as flag-bearer even for a few months,” he said.