Tags: Boat Racing, Climbing
By Marjorie Gorospe
MANDALUYONG CITY, METRO MANILA— Noelle Wenceslao first made the Philippines proud by being the first Filipina and ASEAN woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest in 2007. Today, she continues to soar as she joins the Philippine Dragon Boat Racing Team win another gold.
The 30-year-old Wenceslao prefers not to take it as a personal achievement but rather a national pride for the Philippine Expedition team along with Leo Oracion.
She says everything was worth it whenever she recalls the sacrifices the team has gone through just to be on top of the world.
“The moment we decided to set foot at the bottom of the mountain, all the obstacles seemed easy. We were prepared physically, mentally and emotionally.” In my case, I almost died having pulmonary edema and my mom died without me beside her,” Wenceslao recalls.
But those obstacles, she says, never turned her down. Instead, these gave her strength to conquer greater heights.
Her efforts were not put to waste as she became the first Filipina to climb Mt. Everest in Nepal in 2007. In another attempt on the same year, she became the first woman in the world to ascend to Mt. Everest’s north side from Tibet and descend to the south side in Nepal.
“Nothing stopped us because we believe in the power of Pinays,” she says. Wenceslao first joined a mountaineering club in her college years at the University of the Philippines.
After the historical climb to Mount Everest, she joined the Balangay Expedition training of Kaya ng Pinoy Foundation, aiming to traverse the domestic seawater using an ancient vessel. However, she had to leave the training to join the women’s national team in the dragon boat racing competition in Prague, Czech Republic in 2009.
The Philippine Dragon Boat Women’s National Team is currently the world record holder of the 200 meter race. They bagged one Gold in the 200 meter Premier Mixed and 200 meter Premier Open events. They also got Silver in the 500 Premier Open during the 9th World Dragonboat Championship.
Wenceslao and her team are currently training for the upcoming Asian competition which will be held in China. Dragon boat racing will be first recognized here as a sports.
Meanwhile, the 10th World Dragon Boat Racing Championship will be hosted in Tampa Bay, Florida, USA sometime in July-August 2011.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a man or a woman once you’re in these kinds of sports and adventure. What matters is that you’re doing your best and you all help each other to win and make the country proud,” shares Wenceslao.
For updates on Wenceslao, you may visit Pinays on Everest and the Philippine Dragon Boat Racing Team at the Philippine Dragon Boat Federation website.
Photos taken from Pinays on Everest.
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