BANTAY, Ilocos Sur -- There was no hint of despair on the face of Prince Langitao even after ARMM got the boot in the 2018 Palarong Pambansa secondary boys tennis doubles.
In fact, he was still in high spirits as he greeted his coach on the sidelines with a big smile after they fell to Mimaropa, 8-3, on Thursday morning at the Quirino Stadium.
"I'm just enjoying this whole experience," Langitao said in Filipino.
The 13-year-old Marawi native applied the same optimism in the aftermath of a siege that ravaged their city. Marawi is still recovering from the conflict between the ISIS and the military forces that lasted for more than six months. Langitao recalled crippling in fear upon learning about the alleged ISIS takeover on social media site Facebook. The next morning, his family evacuated to a nearby province.
"I was really afraid. It wasn't until I opened my Facebook that we learned that there were shootings just outside our house," he said.
It came as a big blow to his preparation for the Vigan showpiece, though. For three months, Langitao settled for informal training sessions with his uncles, who were also above average tennis players during their prime.
But he didn't mind, so long as he played the sport he loved while waiting for peace to prevail in their hometown.
"I said it's okay because there's a tennis court in our province where I can play with my uncles," he said.
Still, the big Roger Federer fan is holding his head high. There are gains from his first stint in the annual competition among 17 regions, after all. In the loss, he was able to identify his weaknesses which he aims to improve before competing in the same tournament next year in Davao.
By that time, he's hopeful he will don the ARMM's green and yellow colors with his teammates from Marawi.
"It's better if I will play with my teammates from Marawi next year," he said.