Alas Pilipinas U18’s Jaila Adrao shares her gratitude and lessons learned after the team’s fourth-place finish in the 2025 Asian Youth Games in Bahrain.
Despite falling short in their bronze-medal bid at the 2025 Asian Youth Games, Jaila Adrao and the rest of Alas Pilipinas U18 took plenty of valuable lessons from their journey.
After pushing Thailand to the limit in all three sets, the young Filipinas ultimately bowed in straight sets, 24-26, 20-25, 24-26, to settle for fourth place.
Adrao admitted that while the team showed great effort early in each set, late-game lapses proved costly.
“As you can see, nagdidikit po kami pero sa bandang huli po ulit-ulit po nangyari 'yung situation na bumibitaw kami,” said Adrao. “Siguro dun po lumabas 'yung sinasabi nila coach na palinisan na lang ng galaw.”
“Makikita po natin na nagdidikitan kami sa simula. Pero nung bandang huli parang bumibitaw po talaga kami, tas doon nakikita na ‘yung lapses po namin at ‘yung errors din po namin lumalabas na doon sa huli.”
Grateful for the opportunity
While the loss was a tough one to swallow, Adrao emphasized that the experience served as a valuable reminder of what it takes to finish strong against elite competition.
Despite missing out on a podium finish, the NU-Nazareth standout expressed deep gratitude for the chance to represent the country and compete on the international stage.
“Siyempre po sobrang thankful po kasi 'yung experience po na ito parang hindi po lahat makaka-experience po ng ganito,” said Adrao. “So sa akin po, grateful po ako sa PNVF, PSC, POC at siyempre po sa management ng NU kasi pinaghandaan din po namin tong league po na ‘to.”
“At siyempre sa mga teammates ko and kay Lord kasi sabay-sabay po namin pinagdabaho ‘to. Kahit nabitin po kami, lumaban pa rin po kami.”
Feeling the support in Bahrain
Even away from home, the young Filipina spikers never felt alone.
Adrao shared how the Filipino community in Bahrain made the team feel at home, constantly showing their support through cheers and messages.
“Siyempre po parang na-feel po namin kahit sa ibang bansa, home pa rin po,” she said. “Sobrang dami po ang Pilipino na sumusuporta po sa amin at nag-message. Lalo na po pag may times na ‘yun pag talo po kami, na d’yan din po sila nakasuporta, manalo [o] matalo po, sumusuporta po sila sa amin.”
(With reports from RM Chua/One Sports)
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Kiko Demigillo’s journey in sports storytelling began with a deep passion for games and athletes, which eventually grew into a full-fledged career.
Now a dedicated sportswriter, Kiko covers a wide range of beats for One Sports, including the PVL, UAAP, PBA, and various international tournaments.