A pilot for the Philippine Air Force and a young man from Cavite emerged as the top two candidates to become the first-ever Filipino astronaut.
Air Force pilot Lt. Mario Mendoza Jr., 31, and Evan Rey Datuin, 24, bested 400 other applicants in the AXE Apollo Space Academy Philippines’ as they battled it out at the AXE Apollo National Challenge at Bonifacio Global City on Saturday.
To test their endurance, the last 50 contestants were asked to stand in poles while accomplishing various physical tasks such as lifting 15-pound metal weights.
Mendoza and Datuin will be sent to the Axe Apollo International Space Camp in Orlando, Florida for training. One of them is guaranteed to travel to space in 2014.
The two will also be joined by a third candidate to be picked via an electronic raffle promo. The three candidates from the Philippines will experience astronaut training in the US this December together with over a hundred other candidates from all over the world.
“It’s been over seven months since we started this nationwide search for the first Pinoy astronaut. Now that we are down to the Top 400, I think it’s really starting to sink in that pretty soon we will be sending one of these people to space,” AXE Philippines brand manager Gem Laforteza said in a statement.
“I’m proud to have been involved in the selection process for the first Filipino astronaut. Naniniwala talaga ako na talentado ang mga Pinoy. We deserve this opportunity. And that’s why we’ve tried our best to make sure that whoever gets it really deserves the one-in-a-hundred-million chance to go to space,” added AXE Apollo national selection director Luis Manzano.
The AXE Apollo National Challenges, organized by AXE and cable channel AXN, tested the candidates’ skill, determination, and what AXE calls the “hero-factor.”
The first challenge was done in virtual space where over 4,000 of the top-voted candidates were invited to take an online test designed to select the top 400 applicants based on their intellectual prowess.
The next challenge involved a rigorous test of physical fitness, with the candidates undergoing a military-inspired obstacle course, from which the top 50 hopefuls emerged.
Lastly, the candidates were asked to stand on pegs in a challenge called “the last hero standing,” a grueling test of willpower designed to select the most determined candidates.
“I think anyone would be happy with making it to the Top 3 who will be sent to the US for astronaut training. Even if you don’t make it to space, Space Camp is still a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Pero siyempre, iba pa rin ‘yung masasabi mo na nag-bakasyon ka sa space,” said AXE Apollo national selection director Sam Gogna of the radio program Boys Night Out.--Source: ABS-CBN News
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| Evan Rey Datuin (L) and Mario Mendoza Jr. (R) |
To test their endurance, the last 50 contestants were asked to stand in poles while accomplishing various physical tasks such as lifting 15-pound metal weights.
Mendoza and Datuin will be sent to the Axe Apollo International Space Camp in Orlando, Florida for training. One of them is guaranteed to travel to space in 2014.
The two will also be joined by a third candidate to be picked via an electronic raffle promo. The three candidates from the Philippines will experience astronaut training in the US this December together with over a hundred other candidates from all over the world.
“It’s been over seven months since we started this nationwide search for the first Pinoy astronaut. Now that we are down to the Top 400, I think it’s really starting to sink in that pretty soon we will be sending one of these people to space,” AXE Philippines brand manager Gem Laforteza said in a statement.
“I’m proud to have been involved in the selection process for the first Filipino astronaut. Naniniwala talaga ako na talentado ang mga Pinoy. We deserve this opportunity. And that’s why we’ve tried our best to make sure that whoever gets it really deserves the one-in-a-hundred-million chance to go to space,” added AXE Apollo national selection director Luis Manzano.
The AXE Apollo National Challenges, organized by AXE and cable channel AXN, tested the candidates’ skill, determination, and what AXE calls the “hero-factor.”
The first challenge was done in virtual space where over 4,000 of the top-voted candidates were invited to take an online test designed to select the top 400 applicants based on their intellectual prowess.
The next challenge involved a rigorous test of physical fitness, with the candidates undergoing a military-inspired obstacle course, from which the top 50 hopefuls emerged.
Lastly, the candidates were asked to stand on pegs in a challenge called “the last hero standing,” a grueling test of willpower designed to select the most determined candidates.
“I think anyone would be happy with making it to the Top 3 who will be sent to the US for astronaut training. Even if you don’t make it to space, Space Camp is still a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Pero siyempre, iba pa rin ‘yung masasabi mo na nag-bakasyon ka sa space,” said AXE Apollo national selection director Sam Gogna of the radio program Boys Night Out.--Source: ABS-CBN News