In September, a call circulated throughout the online community asking for votes for China-based Pinoy Marcos Antonio Torres, for the chance to carry the Olympic torch along with seven other nationalities.

Late last week, the results came in: Torres placed second with 13,342 votes.

In the site Expats for Olympic Torchbearers, Torres’ solicitation went, “Hope you can help me be the first Filipino torch bearer for the first time since the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. It is said that the first and only time a Filipino held the torch was during the 1964 Tokyo Olympics 44 years ago.

“If he doesn’t carry it now, we may not have a Filipino in the next 50 years as it may take a while again before the Olympics are held in Asia. Winning an Olympic gold has been elusive for the Philippines. This is an opportunity to unify all Filipinos towards a single golden Olympic cause.”

Thanks to all those who voted and circulated the plea, a Pinoy will get to carry the Olympic torch next year in Beijing.

You might want to read these too:
The Winning Eight
ChinaDaily’s “Dream a Little Dream”
Torres’ blog

Photo from Torres’ blog