Swimmer Ernie A. Gawilan started swimming in 2000 during his free time while working as a housekeeper in Samal, and a swim coach noticed him.
Gawilan has gone on to win three gold medals and two silvers at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Indonesia, becoming the first Filipino athlete to do so.
However, Ernie’s profile page on the official website of the International Paralympic Committee won’t tell you anything about being an abortion survivor.
Insead, Ernie’s “type of impairment” is listed as “limb deficiency,” and the “origin of impairment” is noted as “congenital.”
Back in 2014, Ernie gave as interview where he revealed that he very nearly didn’t make it out of the womb alive. Spin.ph reported He almost died during an unsuccessful abortion when his mother tried to conceal her pregnancy by another man. His father, upon discovering the infidelity, abandoned them. His mother later died of cholera and his grandparents reared him as their own.
Gawilan lacks legs, and his left arm failed to fully develop—but he also grew up as an orphan when his mother died of cholera when he was only five months old reports the Bridgehead.
Check out the Philippines flag bearer at the closing paralytics this Sunday.
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