Josephine de la Viña (April 15, 1946 – November 4, 2011) was a discus thrower from the Philippines who is considered as her country's greatest athlete in the event. She won gold medals in her pet event at the

1966 Asian Games The 1966 Asian Games (), also known as the V Asiad, were a continental multi-sport event that was held from 9 to 20 December 1966, in Bangkok, Thailand. A total of 142 events in 16 sports were contested by athletes during the games. Taiwan and Isr ...

and

1973 Asian Athletics Championships The inaugural Asian Athletics Championships were held in 1973 at the Rodriguez Sports Center in Marikina, Rizal, Philippines from November 18–23, 1973. Medal summary Men's events Women's events Medal Table External linksGBR Athletics ...

. She also competed at the

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

and 1972 Olympics.

Personal life

Born in

Iloilo Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...

to a

Mexican-American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...

father and a Cebuana mother, de la Viña spent her elementary and high school years in

Cebu Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 ...

where she excelled in softball and athletics. She later earned a scholarship at

Cebu Institute of Technology Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 ...

.FilipiKnow
“13 Sports Legends Who Proved Filipinos Are Kickass Athletes”
Updated 29 February 2020. Retrieved 15 September 2020. De la Viña was nicknamed "Big Jo" for her hefty six-foot frame and her trademark

afro The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...

hairstyle, which made her an imposing presence on the field.

Career

Dela Viña eventually gave up softball and concentrated on throwing events in athletics like discus, javelin and shot put after being persuaded by school officials to develop her potential. She was just 18 years old when she won a bronze medal in discus throw at the

1962 Asian Games ) , Host city = Jakarta, Indonesia , Nations participating = 17 , Athletes participating = 1,460 , Events = 120 in 13 sports , Opening ceremony = 24 August 1962 , Closing ceremony = 4 September 1962 , ...

, placing behind Japanese Keiko Murase and Seiko Obonai. Two years later, Dela Viña competed at the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this ho ...

where she placed 18th among 21 starters. At the

, Dela Viña threw the discus at a distance of 47.58m to set a new Games record en route to winning the gold medal. She also competed in shot put where she placed fourth overall. At the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...

, the hefty Cebuana registered 46.56m to place 15th out of 16 entries. She was the only Asian competitor in the field. Dela Viña was back at the

1970 Asian Games The 6th Asian Games () were held from 9 to 20 December 1970 in Bangkok, Thailand.- - Seoul, South Korea, had been selected to host the 6th Games but it declined due to both financial reasons and security threats from neighboring North Korea. (T ...

but failed to land a medal. Two years later, she made her third Olympic appearance at the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...

where she barely missed making the final round. The Filipina had a best effort of 53.92m to place 13th overall. In the inaugural

Asian Athletics Championships The Asian Athletics Championships is an event organized by the Asian Athletics Association. History The competition courted controversy with the IAAF when political in-fighting arose after Israel was excluded from participation in 1977. That e ...

held in

Marikina Marikina (), officially the City of Marikina ( fil, Lungsod ng Marikina), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 456,159 people. It is loca ...

in 1973, Dela Viña threw the discus at a record distance 50.74m to comfortably win the gold medal. By doing so, she became the first Filipino athlete to win a gold medal in both the

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

and

- a feat matched only by sprinter

Lydia De Vega Maria Lydia de Vega-Mercado (; December 26, 1964 – August 10, 2022) was a Filipina athlete who was considered Asia's fastest woman in the 1980s. Athletic career De Vega was discovered in the Palarong Pambansa () in the 1970s, and was recrui ...

.Pirie, Andrew
“Josephine Dela Viña Untouched Discus Records”
Pinoy Athletics Info. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 15 September 2020. She withdrew from the

1974 Asian Games The 7th Asian Games ( fa, بازی‌های آسیایی ۱۹۷۴) were held from 1 to 16 September 1974 in Tehran, Imperial State of Iran. The Aryamehr Sports Complex was built for the Games. The Asian Games were hosted in the Middle East for th ...

to visit her father, who suddenly fell ill in the United States.

Death

Dela Viña died on November 4, 2011, in Iloilo at the age of 65. The cause of her death was not known.

Legacy

Dela Viña's personal best throw of 54.71m, which she set during the

1971 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 1971 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships took place between June 25–27 at Hayward Field on the campus of University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. The Women's Championships took place at Memorial Stadium on the campus of Bakersfield C ...

Bakersfield Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...

, remains a national record to this day. She also holds the second-best mark of 53.92m, which she achieved during the qualification round of the

. She is the only Filipina discus thrower in history to breach the 50m mark and her record is expected to last for many more decades. Dela Viña also held the national shot put record from 1970 to 1975. In 2018, Dela Viña was posthumously inducted into the

Philippine Sports Hall of Fame The Philippine Sports Hall of Fame (PSHOF) is a hall of fame established in 1999 to honor Filipino athletes, trainers, and coaches with the first batch of inductees included in the hall of fame in 2010. The Philippine Sports Commission manages th ...

.Malanum, Jean
“PSC bares 10 athletes to be inducted into 2018 Sports Hall of Fame”
12 October 2018. Retrieved 15 September 2020.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:De la Vina, Josephine Filipino female discus throwers Sportspeople from Iloilo Athletes (track and field) at the 1962 Asian Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 Asian Games 1946 births 2011 deaths Medalists at the 1962 Asian Games Medalists at the 1966 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for the Philippines Asian Games bronze medalists for the Philippines Olympic track and field athletes for the Philippines Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Asian Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Philippine Sports Hall of Fame inductees Asian Athletics Championships winners