Coach Boy – Part-time Potpot Driver; Full-time Palarong Pambansa Gymnastics Coach
Who is Coach Boy Bandalan to Julie Ann Borneo ? To her she is the trainer who called interested young athletes to train for Gymnastics at Baybay, Leyte.
Who is Coach Boy Bandalan to me? He is A Palarong Pambansa Gymnastics Coach.
But Coach Boy is more than that to different people.
Personal Interview with Leyte Gymnastics Coach Boy Bandalan
This is not going to be a post on why does he have to be a Pot-pot driver when he is already a Gymnastics coach. This is a post on how a former Palarong Pambansa athlete himself inspired young kids from Baybay, Leyte to come together to Baybay High and learn Gymnastics so that one day they will compete at Palarong Pambansa together with the country’s finest athletes across the nation.
When I first met Coach Boy I did not suspect him as an athlete let alone a Gymnastics coach. Not like Coach Sweet who is lean and slender, Coach Boy was muscular. You see I have this idea in my head of what gymnasts look like. After my interview with Coach Boy I have a renewed idea on of what gymnasts can look like.
My interview with Coach Boy focused on his experience as a Palarong Pambansa coach. He also shared with me a little bit about his personal life. He is a father of eight but is currently supporting five. The children left with him are still young and he has one daughter competing for Palarong Pambansa 2012 as well. His other children are either too old already or too young to compete. He is a single father.
He was a former Palarong Pambansa athlete and a silver medalist in the 1980 Palarong Bagong Lipunan. He worked different jobs to support himself and his family. He once worked as a janitor and he also coached gymnastics for the Palarong Pambansa Metro Manila delegates. When he came back to Leyte in 2003 he attended the EVRAA (Eastern Visayas Regional Athletics Association) which made him interested to teach Gymnastics. In 2005, he was asked by Principal Shirley Gofoy of BayBay High to teach Gymnastics for the athletes in Leyte. He works as a Pot-pot driver in the morning from 4 am until 3pm. Then in the afternoons, he goes to Baybay High to train gymnasts. When I first saw him he was giving instructions to several gymnasts about vaulting.
Gymnastics Coach Boy Bandalan from Leyte
Throughout my interview with Coach Boy he appeared serious, solemn and very confident. He did not hide the fact that he holds odd jobs to support his family. Instead I sensed an air of pride when he talks about how he earns an honest living and that he has supported several kids to achieve their dreams as a gymnast. Although I noticed a distant look on his eyes when he mentioned about one male athlete who he was training but did not make it to Palarong Pambansa. He talked about attitude and how important it is for an athlete to have the right kind of attitude as a person and as a trainee. He said that this boy, who showed potential, decided to collect bottles and newspaper instead to earn a living but promised to return to training the next year. Coach boy stressed about the importance of proper support the athletes should be getting to reach Palarong Pambansa. Just like Julie Ann who has the support of her parents and grandmother or his daughter who has him as a father and a coach for Palarong Pambansa 2012.
I thanked Coach Boy for the opportunity and time to interview him. I told him that I will publish his story and that I will do my best to spread his message online. Yet it took me some time to write this post for Special Education Philippines. I have a hard time to write when Im not inspired and since this is a very inspiring story I want to be in that element when I write this piece. Until I saw this video of Will Smith from YouTube. I remembered one of my favorite lines from “The Pursuit of Happyness”,
“Don’t ever let somebody tell you…you can’t do something. You got a dream..you gotta protect it. People can’t do something themselves..they wanna tell you you can’t do it. If you want something go get it“.
and I think Coach Boy is one of those people who gets it…
D5 Creation
Thanks for putting the spotlight on yet another unsung hero. Sports has never really gotten sufficient support from the government. It’s people like Coach Boy Bandalan who keep our hope alive that someday our country could produce an Olympic gold medalist.
Btw, my father is from Baybay. He already passed away, but it reminds me of him when I read something about the town, although that’s not very often. Thanks for sharing!
It gives me a warm feeling in my heart to know that someone whose roots is from BayBay has come to read this post.
The well-off athletes should definitely be thankful that they can focus on their sports without having to think of doing odd jobs just to get by. I admire Coach Boy’s determination and he’s right, he should take pride that he goes to great lengths to earn money for his kids. And I wish that little boy will be able to train next year and that our government will give our local athletes a lot more support.
I wish the same.
He deserves more government support to train potential medal winners in international sports events.
nice to learn few things about Coach Boy here in your post
great share 
Don’t ever let somebody tell you…you can’t do something. You got a dream..you gotta protect it. People can’t do something themselves..they wanna tell you you can’t do it. If you want something go get it“.
definitely true..
what a very inspiring post!
Great feature. It is very nice to read that some bloggers have the creativity to feature people who are not mainly mainstream. Nice to learn about their lives
)
very inspiring!! i used to be a gymnast! made it to palarong pambansa as well but that was so long ago already haha!
Wow that’s cool to know that a former Palarong Pambansa gymnast visited this site. Hope you can tell us more about your experience.
Wow, Coach Boy is very inspiring. Actually I also thought that gymnasts are lean and slender. But thanks to your post, my initial perception has now changed..
If only I was able to train earlier, I would’ve loved to become a gymnast too.. ^^
Yipee that makes two converts.
wow, i’m happy to see Leyte going strong in Palarong Pambansa. my genealogical roots are from Hilongos, Leyte.
i also think that gymnastics is a very challenging sport. it requires years of training your muscles and joints to move the way you want them to, and I’d imagine that it really hurts. Congratulations to the gymnastics team under Coach Boy.
Amazing that people from Leyte are reading this post. I hope next year we can feature more cities like Leyte for different sports.
Saludo ako sa mga taong katulad ni Coach Boy. Malinis na trabaho ang pinanggagalingan ng pagkaing inihahain nya sa kanilang tahanan.
Amen.
at first look you wont think that he used to be a gymnast because of his muscular body. His story is so inspiring at marami siyang natutulungan.
inspiring!
there’s still hope in humanity — ala 9gag lol
btaw, most people na nsa situation ni coach will mostly give up and do dirty jobs.
looking forward for future posts
Such an inspiration, especially for a single father who’s raised so many children. I look up to him for being the strong character that he is — having the dream and initiative to help other gymnast aspirants to reach their dream.
And yes, i hope for the other kids a strong support system so that they can progress with their life’s goals.
Very inspiring. I love watching gymnasts perform and when I was young, I dreamed of being one. hehe
His story should inspire each and everyone of us especially those who wish to try the sport. ^_^
This is a beautiful feature. I really salute those people who are really hardworking in order to support their family.
Moreover, the government really needs to support those in sports too because it is also education in itself.
Well done indeed. He’s one of those usually ignored in the limelight but has offered and committed so much for a sublime cause and mission.
Thanks for sharing his life and giving him the chance to get that recognition. Kudos.
we should be thankful to people like coach boy they develop our athletes that beings pride to our nation. more power to him. Yahweh bless.
He should be thanked for his efforts in helping these aspiring kids to become good athlete. I do hope that local government of Baybay can at least help him out earn better income or to give him some support incentive for all his deeds.
It doesn’t matter whether you attained your dreams in life.
I believe that whatever blessing we deserve… it will come in GOD’s time
Sharing our talents and skills to others who may benefit from them is
very noble. We may not fulfill our goals but having others dreams come true
is far more significant.