Beijing, 2 February 2022 – Ambassador Jose Santiago L. Sta. Romana met with Mr. Asa Miller, the lone Philippine athlete competing in the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, in a special videoconference last 1 February 2022. Joining them were Mr. Jim Apelar (President of the Philippine Ski and Snowboard Federation, Inc.) and the Consuls General of the Philippines in China, namely Minister and Consul General Dinno Oblena (Beijing), Consul General Raly Tejada (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region), Consul General Marshall Louis Alferez (Guangzhou), Consul General Josel Ignacio (Shanghai), Consul General Flerida Ann Camille Mayo (Chongqing), Consul General Porfirio Mayo Jr. (Macau Special Administrative Region), and Consul General Maria Antonina Mendoza-Oblena (Xiamen).

Ambassador Sta. Romana extended a warm welcome to Asa and other members of Team Philippines who arrived in Beijing over the past couple of days. Deputy Speaker Abraham Tolentino (President of the Philippine Olympic Committee) and Mr. Bones Floro (chef de mission of the Philippine Delegation) are also in Beijing.

Asa shared a glimpse of his experiences while settling in the Olympic Village in Yanqing and his first-hand impressions from training on Beijing’s slopes and the overall preparations for the whole sporting event. He will be competing at the ‘Men’s Giant Slalom’ runs on 13 February and the ‘Men’s Slalom’ runs on 16 February. Asa will also be the Philippine flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony to be held on 4 February 2022.

Ambassador Sta. Romana and the Philippine Consuls General each expressed their well wishes to Asa and assured him of their full support and that of the Filipino Community in China. They underscored that Asa’s achievement of qualifying for the Olympics is in itself a source of pride and inspiration for the whole Filipino nation. They wished Asa the best of luck and looked forward to watching him compete in the coming days.

The Olympic Games will be primarily broadcast by CCTV-5 in China and Cignal TV in the Philippines. The Opening Ceremony on 4 February is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. (GMT+8) while the tentative details of Asa Miller’s competition events are as follows: on 13 February, ‘Men’s Giant Slalom Runs 1 and 2’ at 10:15 and 13:45, respectively; and on 16 February, ‘Men’s Slalom Runs 1 and 2’ at 10:15 and 13:45, respectively. More and updated information may be found on the Olympics’ official website: https://bit.ly/3gka2K1. END