Michael Christian Martinez Winter Olympics Filipino Figure Skater Lands At 19th Place But Earns Support & $10,000 From A Business Tycoon
Michael Christian Martinez Winter Olympics Filipino Figure skater, who's the only representative for the said competition for the entire South East Asia just made history.
He may not earn a medal from his performance, which landed him in the 19th place out of the top 24 contestants of the men's figure skating competition, but he most certainly earned the support and love of not only his countrymen but the entire world.
He garnered a score of 64.81 in the short skate where he performed to the tune of "Romeo and Juliet," then wowed in the free skate routine over the beat of "Malagueña" to earn 119.44 for the total of 184.25.
Yuzuru Hanyu, the 19-year old Japanese handed its first-ever gold medal for Japan, while Canadian Patrick Chan bagged the silver medal and Kazakhstan's Denis Ten received the bronze medal.
Martinez is the first Filipino skater to compete in the Olympics, hailing from a country that doesn't even have snow.
Although he did not earn any medal from his Sochi Winter Olympics performance, he did receive a bonus from a Filipino business tycoon, who clearly recognizes his efforts.
Michael Christian Martinez will receive a hefty sum of money amounting to $10,000 from the MVP Sports Foundation, funded by Manuel V. Pangilinan, according to national team head coach Chot Reyes via Twitter.
"What a brave kid, gave it all tonight. Thank you to him and his parents. Let's continue supporting him," Pangilinan said to the local Filipino channel, ABS-CBN.
MVP also said on Twitter that he is very proud of Martinez and that he's happy that the 17-year old represented the country during the Winter Olympics.
Although, Martinez only landed at the 19th spot the Filipino figure skater clearly has high hopes for the future in Olympics.
"I feel very happy and proud that I made it here in the final round of the Winter Olympic Games," Martinez gladly told The Associated Press.
"I feel very happy because I landed my triple axel during the halfway program, so that's an improvement and I got the chance to land on some of my jumps. My next plan is to qualify for the next Olympic Games and try to get a medal," the youngest competitor for Sochi Winter Olympics Figure Skating event added.
Michael Christian Martinez will compete at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Bulgaria next month following the Sochi Winter Olympics competition.
