A year after his silver medal in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games was damaged by fire that razed his family’s home to the ground, triathlete Andrew Kim Remolino can now smile again following the restoration of his medallion.
Philippine Olympic Committee deputy secretary-general Karen Tanchanco-Caballero and the Manila Standard Sports Section collaborated in restoring the silver medal back to its old glory, complete with the original lace used for the winners’ medals.
“Thank you so much po, sobrang ganda, appreciate it so much po,” said Remolino as he sent his photo wearing his “new” silver medal.
Caballero, who is also president of Pilipinas Sepaktakraw Federation, thanked Manila Standard Sports for taking the extra mile to make a Philippine team athlete happy. She also relayed the gratefulness of Triathlon Association of the Philippines president Tom Carrasco.
After receiving the restored medal, Caballero made sure to find an original lace and fortunately, the Ceremony Committee head in the 2019 SEA Games found an extra piece and sent it to her.
Caballero immediately sent the medal, complete with a brand new lace to Remolino in a package with a short note, “Restored memory of the honor you gave to our country.”
The 19-year-old Cebuano and former national juniors’ champion made his debut in the SEAG and bagged the silver medal after finishing second to compatriot John Chicano in the men’s triathlon category.
But tragedy struck on July 12 last year when Remolino’s family house was razed by fire, along with 14 houses in Talisay City.
Fortunately, not one family member was hurt in the incident, but all their belongings were burned to ashes, with both his bike and medal torched beyond recognition.
Luckily, he still found his silver medal beneath the ashes, covered in black soot.
He posted his charred silver medal on his social media page, attracting calls by netizens to “Make this burned SEA Games medal shine again.”
A fund-raising campaign was also done online to help his family recover from the incident.
Months later, Remolino was gifted with a new bike, but his precious medal remained in the closet.
Manila Standard Publishing employees got wind of his story and asked the Sports Section, how it can be of help.
The work began, with this writer asking a jeweler friend to restore the luster of the burnt medal.