The Philippines competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics, which was held in London, from 27 July to 12 August 2012. This was the nation's twentieth appearance at the Olympics.

The Philippine Olympic Committee sent the nation's smallest delegation to the Games since 1996. A total of 11 athletes, 7 men and 4 women, competed in 8 sports. Four athletes received their spots in track and field, and in swimming by wild card entries. Other Filipino athletes won their spots by participating in various qualifying matches around the world. Three athletes had competed in Beijing, including weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz, who became the nation's first female flag bearer at the opening ceremony. The Philippines marked its Olympic return in cycling, and in judo. For the fourth time in a row, the Philippines did not earn any medals at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Background The chef de mission of the Philippine team was Manny Lopez, vice president of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC). Before the games, he said that he was looking to boxing's Mark Anthony Barriga and BMX racing's Daniel Caluag as the two athletes with the most potential to end the country's Olympic medal drought. However, POC chairperson Monico Puentevella tried to lower expectations, telling sportswriters not to expect any medal, and saying it would be a "miracle" if any of the eleven athletes in the contingent bring home a medal of any color. The country has not won a medal at the Olympics since the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, where Mansueto Velasco won a silver for boxing.

The 30-minute flag raising ceremony for the Philippine team was held at the Olympic Village on 22 July, attended by eight of the eleven Philippine Olympic athletes, five team officials, and other invited guests. The country was ninth out of 204 to have its flag raised as part of the Olympic tradition.

Beginning in 2013, the Southeast Asian Games will shift its focus to the staging of traditional Olympic sports, rather than the indigenous events which have not gained wide recognition outside the region. The Philippines is a major participant in the SEA Games, which is held every 2 years with supervision by the International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Council of Asia.

Opening ceremony The Olympic uniform worn by the athletes during the opening ceremony was a modern take on the barong Tagalog, a distinct form of formal wear featuring embroidered translucent fabric. The uniform was designed by Filipino fashion designer Rajo Laurel, who serves as a judge on Project Runway Philippines. His rendition of the barong Tagalog has a more tapered fit, slightly cropped length, and small fabrication changes while paying great respect to tradition. This is paired with weight wool flat front trousers, and a salakot with a golf leaf designed to catch the light as the athletes march into the stadium.

Twenty-one-year-old weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz from Zamboanga City, who competed at her second consecutive Olympics, acted as the nation's flag bearer in the opening ceremonies, the first by a female in Olympic history. She was unanimously selected by the POC board for the honor of carrying the flag.

Overview by sports

Archery

The Philippines was represented in archery events by two athletes, Mark Javier and Rachelle Anne Cabral. As part of their final preparations in the build-up to the Olympics, the two archers underwent 10 days of training in South Korea under Korean coach Chung Jae Yun. Archery events in the London games were held at the Lord's Cricket Ground.

Mark Javier competed in the men's individual event. This was his second Olympic Games, having previously competed in the same event at the 2008 Summer Olympics, where he placed 36th of 64 in the ranking round and was eliminated in first round of the tournament. In the ranking round held on 28 July, he scored 649 of a possible 720. This ranked him 55th of the 64 competitors, setting up a first round match-up with Brady Ellison of the United States, who is ranked #1 in the world. In the match with Ellison, the American won the first, second, and fourth sets, with the third set resulting in a draw. The final score had Ellison winning 7-1, eliminating Javier from the tournament.

Rachel Anne Cabral competed in the women's individual event. She scored 627 in the ranking round held on 28 July, which placed her 48th out of 64 competitors. In the first round of the knockout she faced Inna Stepanova of Russia. Stepanova won the first, second, and fourth set, with the third set resulting in a draw. The final score had Stepanova winning 7-1, which eliminated Cabral from the tournament.

Another archery athlete with Philippine roots competing at the Olympics was Filipino-Canadian Crispin Dueñas. Dueñas was born in Toronto where his parents had immigrated from the Philippines. Despite being a member of the Canadian team at the games, he had previously received offers, and had considered, to join the Philippine delegation. Dueñas was unable to advance past the first stage of the knockout tournament.

AthleteEventRanking roundRound of 64Round of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal / ScoreSeedOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreRankMark JavierMen's individual64955 (10)L 1–7Did not advanceRachelle Anne CabralWomen's individual62748 (17)L 1–7Did not advance

Athletics

The Philippines was represented in the woman's long jump event by Marestella Torres, the only competitor from Southeast Asia in the event. This was her second Olympic Games, having previously competed in the same event at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Her personal best in the long jump is 6.71 meters, a national record, achieved at the 2011 Southeast Asian Games in Jakarta where she won the gold. Torres achieved a jump of 5.98 meters on her first attempt, followed by 6.21 meters on her second attempt, and 6.22 meters on her third and best jump. Her mark of 6.22 meters was good for 22nd place in a field of 28, failing to qualify in the top 12 who would advance to the finals.

Rene Herrera represented the country in the men's 5000 meters event, where he was the only competitor from Southeast Asia. Herrera was a specialist in the 3000 meter steeplechase, having won the gold at the previous five Southeast Asian Games, but was drafted to run the 5000 meters event in the Olympics because of the availability of a slot to compete under the universality rule. He finished the heat with a time of 14:44.11, which was a personal best, and just 10 seconds off his target time. In spite of that, he finished with the slowest time of the 42 starters in the heats, and did not move on to the finals.

Men AthleteEventHeat FinalResultRankResultRankRene Herrera5000 m14:44.1120Did not advance

Women AthleteEventQualificationFinalDistancePositionDistancePositionMarestella TorresLong jump6.2222Did not advance

Key Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only Q = Qualified for the next round q = Qualified for the next round as a fastest loser or, in field events, by position without achieving the qualifying target NR = National record N/A = Round not applicable for the event Bye = Athlete not required to compete in round

Boxing

Boxing has traditionally been the Philippines' strongest sport at the Olympics. Five of the nine medals won by the Philippines in Olympic history came from boxing, including its only two silver medals. The last time the country won an Olympic medal from a non-boxing event was at the 1936 Summer Olympics.

Mark Anthony Barriga, from Panabo, Davao del Norte, was the Philippines' only representative in the sport of boxing at the 2012 Summer Olympics, where he competed in the light flyweight division. He qualified for the Olympics after competing at the 2011 World Amateur Boxing Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan. Though he lost to Zou Shiming of China in the third round of the competition, the International Boxing Association announced in a qualification quirk that Barriga would qualify for the Olympics for losing to the eventual tournament champion. Prior to the start of the Olympics, Barriga trained for three weeks in Cardiff, Wales. He was coached by Roel Velasco, who won a bronze medal for boxing in the 1992 Summer Olympics.

In the opening match of the light flyweight division, Barriga scored a convincing 17-7 victory over Manuel Cappai of Italy. In the next match, against Birzhan Zhakypov of Kazakhstan, Barriga lost by a single point, with a bout resulting in a score of 17-16. Barriga lead the fight by two points at the end of the second round, however he received a warning in the third and final round for ducking, resulting in his opponent receiving two critical additional points which decided the outcome of the match. Immediately after the bout, the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines filed a protest, saying that Barriga should have instead been given a "caution" which normally precedes a warning. However the protest was rejected without the protest committee reviewing the fight tape, saying that the appeal was made on emotional rather than technical grounds.

Another Filipino boxer, Charly Suarez, nearly qualified for the Olympic games but had to settle for the silver at the 2012 Asian Boxing Olympic Qualification Tournament, which rewarded only the gold medalist with a spot in the Olympics.

Men AthleteEventRound of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinalOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultRankMark Anthony BarrigaLight flyweightW 17–7L 16–17Did not advance

Cycling

The Philippines was represented in cycling by Filipino-American Daniel Caluag, who had reigned for four years as the number one ranked BMX rider in the United States, and qualified for a spot in the Olympic Games by accumulating enough points on the international circuit. Unable to utilize training facilities at the United States Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California, Caluag trained instead in the Netherlands prior to the Olympics.

AthleteEventSeedingQuarterfinalSemifinalFinalResultRankPointsRankPointsRankResultRankDaniel CaluagMen's BMX40.90031298Did not advance

Judo

Filipino-Japanese judoka Tomohiko Hoshina was the sole representative of the Philippines in judo at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Hoshina, who carries dual citizenship, has candidly admitted that the reason he was part of the Philippine team in the Olympics was because he had a much higher chance of making it to the games as a Filipino rather than as a Japanese citizen. He qualified for the Olympics through what is called "continental allocation", securing the slot after earning 27 ranking points during the 2011 World Judo Championships in Paris and the 2011 Asian Judo Championships in Abu Dhabi. As part of his preparation for the Olympic games, he trained in Tokyo under Japanese mentor Yasuhiro Sato.

Hoshina entered the Olympic tournament as a heavy underdog against his first competitor, Kim Sung-Min of South Korea. Kim had previously defeated Hoshina at the 2011 World Judo Championships and the 2011 Asian Judo Championships. On 3 August, Hoshina lost to Kim by ippon (full-point throw), eliminating him from the tournament. The match lasted only 1 minute and 5 seconds, and was the second quickest bout of the division.

AthleteEventRound of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsRepechageFinal / OppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultRankTomohiko HoshinaMen's +100 kgL 0000–0100Did not advance

Shooting