The nine athletes, who competed across four sports in London 2012, failed to win a medal for the third consecutive Paralympics but were told they had done the Philippines proud. 

The best performance came in the table tennis from Josephine Medina, who narrowly missed a bronze medal in the C8 category, losing the play-off match 3-0 to Sweden's Josefin Abrahamsson.

They received a cheque  for P120,000 (£1,800/$2,752/€2,072) through the Philippines Sports Association for the Differently-Abled (PHILSPADA), which is acting as the country's National Paralympic Committee (NPC) at a ceremony in the SM Aura Premier Hotel in Manila.

The cheque was presented to Marites Burce, Isidro Vildosola, Andy Avellana and Roger Tapia who competed in athletics, power-lifters Achelle Guion, Agustin Kitan and Adeline Ancheta, swimmer Beariza Ma Roble and Medina, by event and marketing firm Shadowfax Events.

"We hope that the spirit of the London 2012 Games will carry on to Rio [2016] and beyond, giving equal attention to the Olympics and the Paralympics," said PHILSPADA chairman Michael Barredo.

"We hope that more people will be inspired and continue to support our efforts towards the promotion and development of sports for persons with disabilities and the Paralympic Movement."


The presentation ceremony, organised by Shadowfax, in partnership with the British Embassy, SM Aura Premier Hotel and PHILSPADA, also marked the launch of the third and final leg of the "Run for Pinoy Glory 2013 - A Gift to our Filipino Paralympians" campaign, which is due to be held on September 8 at the Camp Aguinaldo Grandstand in Quezon City.

The campaign aims to raise awareness and increase support for Paralympic sport in the Philippines.

"I congratulate the nine Filipinos who represented their country in the London 2012 Paralympics," said British Embassy Chargé d' Affaires Trevor Lewis.

"They are shining examples of courage, perseverance and the indomitable spirit – traits that every athlete, whatever their ability, must possess.

"They are truly a credit to their country and we wish them well today, as we did just over a year ago when they left to compete in London."

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