Ateneo Blue Eagles head coach Tab Baldwin has addressed the public, four days after the drowning deaths of Ateneo Blue Eagles student-athletes Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili during a team-building activity in Dipaculao, Aurora.
Baldwin offered an emotional apology to the families of the two student-athletes while acknowledging what he described as a personal failure in his responsibility as their coach.
In an eight-minute video message released by Ateneo de Manila University on Friday, Baldwin spoke directly to the families of Baterbonia and Adili, whose deaths have sent shockwaves throughout the Philippine sports community and prompted multiple investigations from government agencies and the university itself.
"I've known since the moment that I was told that our boys had passed away that no matter the magnitude of our grief, there were two families that experienced a loss that was so much greater than ours," Baldwin said.
The veteran mentor then reflected on the unique responsibility entrusted to coaches beyond developing players on the court, saying the tragedy struck at the core of that obligation.
"As a coach, we are entrusted with the growth of our basketball players, the development of these young men into future professionals," he said.
"But mostly, as a coach, I'm entrusted by you, the parents and the families, with first and foremost, their well-being. And in this, I feel I've failed. And I'm sorry. To the depth of my being, I'm sorry,"
The longtime Ateneo mentor also provided his clearest account yet of the circumstances surrounding the incident, describing the 'boot camp" as a conditioning session that unexpectedly escalated into a life-threatening situation.
It's also been part of the Blue Eagles' preseason preparation since 2017, which was borne from celebrated Texas A&M head coach Paul 'Bear' Bryant's book with the goal to "break the men."
"On that fateful day when we sent the players out for a routine training run and what we thought was shallow water, up to the moment when we realized that whatever had happened, they were in dangerous water," Baldwin said.
According to Ateneo's previous statements, the team was conducting a conditioning exercise near the shoreline when strong waves and rip currents swept several members of the group into deeper waters. Coaches, staff, and players managed to rescue most of those involved, but Baterbonia and Adili were unable to make it back safely.
Baldwin stressed that everyone present immediately tried to respond once the danger became apparent.
"We did everything that we could as coaches, as people responsible for that situation," he said. "The players themselves did everything they could to ensure that everybody arrived back on shore safely. And then we realized that we hadn't accomplished that."
The tragedy, Baldwin said, weighs heavily on him not only as a coach but also as someone who had built personal relationships with both players.
He revealed that he had struggled, when he attempted to address the rest of the Blue Eagles in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, with feelings of inadequacy amid the shock and heartbreak that had engulfed the team.
"At that moment, I felt that I had failed," he said.
"I failed as a leader. I felt I had failed as a coach. I certainly felt like I had failed as a friend to Divine and Rene. And when later I faced the team to try to be a leader in that moment, I felt that I failed them, too."
As investigations by Ateneo, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Labor and Employment, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government continue, Baldwin concluded his message by focusing on faith, healing, and support for the bereaved families.
"I'm so deeply sorry," he said. "And I'm so deeply sorry to not just the families, but everybody that feels let down, somehow betrayed.
"And I pray that we all find some pathway forward to come back to hope for the future, love for one another, and forgiveness for those of us who failed and tried so desperately hard to reach a better outcome."
