• 1984 & 1988 Olympic Games ( quarterfinalist in both games )
• Currently SEA Games record holder in 100m ( 11.28secs ) since 1987 & former 200m record holder ( 23.35secs ) from 1987 to 2001
• Asia fastest women for 8 years from 1982 – 1990
• 2 gold, 1 silver medals in 2 Asian Games
• 4 gold, 1 silver & 4 bronze medals in 5 Asian Track & Field meet
• 9 gold, 2 silver medals in 5 SEA Games
• 9 gold, 2 silver medals in 5 ASEAN Cup
• 9 gold in 3 ASEAN Schools Track & Field meet

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Awards:

• Philippines Sports Writers Association ( PSA )

1. 1981 – Athlete of the Year
2. 1986 – Athlete of the Year
3. 1987 – Athlete of the Year
4. 1992 – Major Award
5. 1993 – Major Award
6. 1994 – Special Award
7. 1998 – Athlete of the Century
8. 1999 – Millennium Athlete

• Sports Columnist Organisation of the Philippines ( SCOOP )

1. 1981 – Athlete of the Year
2. 1986 – Athlete of the Year
3. 1987 – Outstanding Achievement Award
4. 1993 – Athlete of the Year
5. 1994 – Hall of Fame

• Ten Outstanding Young Men ( TOYM )

1. 1993 – Sports Category

• International Invitation Track & Field Competition, Bangkok

1. 1983 – Best Female Athlete

• Southern Coast Conference, USA

1. 1986 – Athlete of the Year

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Brief Story of Lydia De Vega ( Partly Extracted from Athletics Digest 1983, Singapore and modified by Pirie Enzo):

Early Life

Lydia De Vega was born December 12, 1964, in Meycauayan Bulacan. Her father was the

late Francisco ‘Tatang’ a policeman whose rigid coaching would turn De Vega into are

countries most successful and well known female track and field athlete. Her mother Mary

gave Tatang ten children. Hence Lydia first found her talent for sprinting at the age of 12 and

would enjoy a career that spanned 17 years.

“He controlled my life. Gusto niya sundin ko lahat ng sinasabi niya. Wala siyang

mali sa ginagawa niya sa akin. Siyempre umiyak ako. There were times I felt I

was dying. Each and every workout, I have to finish. Walang pahi-pahinga. Pag

nagkamali, sasaktan, sasabihan ng masasama,” - Lydia

would later say of her father.

Track Queen Lydia De Vega from the Philippines During all the Asian Games in Delhi, sheer

joy and deep disappointment were never as closely connected as after the 100 metres victory

of Lydia De Vega. While The 18-year-old PE student and film actress from the Philippines

had won the final comfortably and unchallenged in excellent 11.76secs. Especially relevant

was she had injured herself after breaking the tape. Hence a pulled muscle prevented her

from participating also in the 200 meters.

Hence, a dream had become true when Lydia crowned herself as the fastest women in Asia.

Yet a dream of a 14-year-old schoolgirl who had started to compete in Track & Field meets

with a promising 27.5secs for the 200m and the silver medal in the Philippines National

Junior Championship. And who added a fourth place in the 100m to this success.

1979

That was four years ago in 1978. Only one year later, in 1979 at the age of 15 years, Lydia

De Vega already represented her country in the 3rd Asian Track & Field Championship in

Tokyo.

Also with a leap of 5.47 metres, she came in 7th in the Long Jump competition but also

carried home a bronze medal when she came third in the women’s 4x400m relay with her

team mates Lorena Morcilla, Carmen Torres and Myrna Ayo.

Still in 1979, Lydia won herself three gold medals in the ASEAN School Championship in

Singapore. She took the titles in the 100m in 12.5 seconds. Also the 400m in 58.0secs. And

in the Long Jump with a leap of 5.27 meters. But Lydia also won a silver medal in these

Games when her 4x100m relay came in second to Malaysia. In conclusion, the Games

already showed very clearly that Lydia was always in danger to be overburdened with

too many races in just in a single meet.

It also applied to her participation in the 10th SEA Games in Jakarta, still in 1979. Therefore

within four days of competition, she took part in the 400m, 4x100m relay, 4x400m relay ( in

which she came 5th each ), in the 100m ( in which she was placed 6th and recorded her best

result of the Games when she clocked 12.38secs in the heats ), and in the Long Jump in

which she came 7th with a performance of 5.45 metres. Also to cut down her competition

programme she resigned from taking part in the Long Jump after having taken the title in this

event in the national junior meet of that year.

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1980

Furthermore, young Lydia made the news headlines when she won both the 200m and 400m

in the first ever ASEAN Cup in Jakarta with times of 24.53 and 55.83 seconds respectively.

Also, she was able to get a ranking in the Asian top-list with 12.0secs in the 100m, 24.53

seconds in the 200m ( this as Asia’s number four ), and with 54.6secs over the 400m, the best

time recorded in the one-lap event by an Asian woman in that year.

With two silver and one bronze medals in the 4th Asian Track & Field Championship in

Tokyo, Lydia De Vega had a flying start to the 1981 season. With a time of 55.39secs, she

was second to Japan’s Yunko Yoshida in the 400 meters. While in the 200m, she clocked

24.54secs to take the bronze behind the Japanese couple Emiko Konishi and Tomi Ohsaka.

Yet her silver came in the 4x100m relay in which the Philippines team was placed

second behind the Malaysia following the disqualification of the winning Japanese team.

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1981

At the end of the 1981 season, Lydia De Vega became the undisputed star of the 11th SEA

Games in Manila. Consequently, she secured the gold medals in the 200m and 400m with an

outstanding 23.54secs in the shorter distance. ( only Chi Cheng was faster in Asia ever) and

with 54.75secs in the metric quarter-mile (these marks are still the Filipino Junior Records).

Also Silver medals in both relay events completed her success but again showed the danger

of being burdened with too many races at the same occasion.

Consequently after leaving school and taking up studies in PE at the Far Eastern University

in Manila. Lydia De Vega also started an interesting job as a film actress. Therefore first in a

movie showing the slow but steady progress of an athlete from the modest very beginnings at

grassroots level, up to setting records and winning gold medals.

While her father, Francisco ‘Tatang;’ De Vega. Also, her coach, expressed his views about

Lydia’s engagements when asked about her future plans, “Studies first, sports second, Film

third.”

Lydia De Vega during her University Days running for FEU. During the eight-lane days of the Rodriguez Centre in Marikina. Mr Encaracion was a student at UP during this time he took the rare photo. (Photo Credits: by Paul Encarnacion).

1982

Hence most of all Gold medals were of course also on Lydia’s programme for 1982. Yet

unchallenged again she won herself a triple crown in the 2nd ASEAN Cup in

Kuala Lumpur with times of 11.8secs for the 100m, 24.2secs for the 200m and 55.0secs for

the 400 meters. Also has also won a bronze with her team in the 4x400m relay she had to

cancel her participation in the sprint relay due to to slight injury which she got in the 400

metres.

Hence this was only three weeks prior to the 9th Asian Games in New Delhi. In the Indian

capital. While Lydia seemed to be all right again when she won her heat in the 100m in

excellent 11.77secs. And clipped off another 1/100 secs winning the finals from India’s P. T.

Usha (11.95secs). And Korea’s Mo Myung Hee (11.99secs). Most noteworthy both of her

opponents never being able to endanger the fleet-footed track queen from the Philippines.

Therefore due to new pains caused by an old injury, Lydia had to cancel her participation in

the 200m after her triumphant showing in the 100 meters.

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Year Age 100m 200m 400m

1978 14 years 13.2 27.5

- 1979 15 years 12.1 26.6 58.8

1980 16 years 12.0 24.53 54.6

1981 17 years - 23.54 54.75

1982 18 years 11.76 24.20 55.0

article from

http://www.js-athletics.com/welcome/about_us/coaches/coach_diay.html

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Lydia De Vega (part 2)

1983

De Vega went onto take the sprint double the following year at the Asian Track and Field

Championships in Kuwait, with 11.82 and 24.07 and bronze in the 400m in 55.66. Defeating

her Indian rival P.T. Usha in the 200m, with Usha getting back in the 400m. She became one

of very few Filipino Track and Field athletes to win the Asian Games and Asian T&F titles.

For her efforts that year Lydia De Vega was sent to the World Championships in Helsinki,

Finland finishing fifth in her heat in 11.74 (+2.1) and then landed last in her quarter-final in

11.90 (which was won by Germany’s Marita Koch, with none other than Jamaica’s long

hauler Merlene Ottey placing second).

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1984

Lydia represented the Philippines in 1984 at the Los Angeles Olympic Games she made the

quarter finals again at a major championship this time finishing 6th in 11.97 in the quarters.

At the Asian Track and Field Champs the next year De Vega ended up with the bronze to PT

Usha.

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1985

The following year however after bypassing the sea games she defended her Asian Games

title in Jakarta, Indonesia with a win of 11.53 over Usha and a blanket finish 23.44 to 23.47

silver to Usha in the 200m.

“Opo nga, mabilis siya, but you know, I ran and I fast:” By Lydia de Vega after beating PT Usha of India in the 1985 Asian Games.

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1987

De Vega continued her winning form with a Philippine and still standing SEA Record in the

100m at the SEA Games clocking 11.28 and also reclaimed the 200m title in 23.57. As noted

above a false start distracted De Vega from the task of breaking the asian record of Chi

Cheng.

She also won the double 100/200 at the Asian Athletic Championships in Singapore again

with 11.43 and a National Record of 23.38. Attending her second Olympic games 1988 in

Seoul , Korea her 11.67 this time not good enough to qualify past the heats. De Vega would

take the next few years off to raise a family her first daughter Stephanie born in 1989 (2 other

children followed one tragically killed in a jeepney accident in 2001).

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1991

De Vega made a comeback in 1991 recapturing the sea games 100m title with 11.44. De Vega

retired on a high note after the 1993 SEA Games in Singapore winning the 100m in 11.60

and also breaking the 200m National Record with a run of 23.37.

In a career that spanned a decade and a half Diay brought home over 40 gold medals from

international meets. Until today she remains the countries greatest ever female sprinter. With

her 100-200-400m marks still standing. The Contributions of her late-father Francisco

‘Tatang’ De Vega helped shape and develop her to the very best of her abilities. Her feats in

Track and Field captured the hearts and minds of the Filipino people.

“Sports has had a great impact in my life. It gave me the opportunity to bring prestige to my country and molded me into what I am today. I want my children to experience the same.”

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Link

The main content of this article is from the site below. However i did add and modify some of it.

http://www.js-athletics.com/welcome/about_us/coaches/coach_diay.html

Other Interesting Links

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/12/31/10/lydia-de-vega-pays-respects-father-coach

http://sports.inquirer.net/breakingnews/breakingnews/view/20110108-313167/Ex-track-queen-Lydia-De-Vega-wants-to-train-new-champ-runners

http://www.philstar.com/sportsarticle.aspx?articleid=646301&publicationsubcategoryid=69

http://philboxing.com/news/story-49313.html

http://philboxing.com/news/story-49417.html