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FORMER MANILA Mayor and Philippine Sports Commission chair Mel Lopez is set to launch his book highlighting his fight for freedom, justice and democracy during the martial law years of the late President Ferdinand Marcos.
RESPECTED AND MUCH ADMIRED Angel “Pappy” Nepomuceno, father-coach of bowling legend Paeng Nepomuceno, passed away last Saturday after a lingering illness. He was 81.
As a longtime Philippine Basketball Association fan, I have noticed the poor attendance recently in most PBA games compared with the sell-out crowd who watched the action in the past.
SOFT-SPOKEN AND DIGNIFIED PAENG Nepomuceno, the world’s greatest tenpin bowler, has named his strongest rivals in this year’s Bowling World Cup finals in Malaysia.
PBA COMMISSIONER Sonny Barrios is keeping his fingers crossed that the golden years of the Philippine Basketball Association will be back.
BASKETBALL FANS may have forgotten his name, but tall and lanky Cristobal Ramas of the fabled Ysmael Steel Admirals of the 1960s used to guard the great Carlos Loyzaga of seven-time National Open champions YCO Painters during the glory days of the Manila Industrial Commercial Athletic Association.
I HAVE NOT BEEN GOING TO THE RACES lately, but it pleases me to know that my kabayan sportsman Hermie Esguerra still dominates the local horse racing scene.
IF PLANS DO NOT MISCARRY, Davonn Harp, a 6-foot-8 demon in defense, is set to suit up anew with the Barako Bull (formerly Red Bull) in the coming Philippine Basketball Association cage wars.
IN ALL MY PAST COLUMNS, I ALWAYS SAID that participating in international basketball tournaments like the Olympics and the World Basketball Championship is only a waste of money, time and effort, however well-intentioned.
I JUST CAN’T UNDERSTAND JAPETH Aguilar. For one so young and still to gain national acclaim and admiration in this basketball-batty nation, I feel Aguilar and his camp should be extra careful with their moves, especially those involving playing contracts.
UNKNOWN TO MANY, THE LATE SPORTS-writer-turned-PR man Mario Roxas played a key role in promoting billiards in the country and giving it respect and recognition as well.
SERBIAN COACH RAJKO TOROMAN, project director of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, has stirred a hornet’s nest by saying that the Smart Gilas national team, the squad he’s handling for SBP, will be more competitive than the ill-starred Powerade-Team Pilipinas quintet.
I APPLAUD THE BOARD MEMBERS OF THE Philippine Basketball Association for their decision not to send PBA stars to play for the country in future Fiba Asia tournaments, the qualifying series for the World Basketball Championship.
SLOWLY BUT SURELY, FAR EASTern University is fast becoming the biggest threat to defending champion Ateneo in the 72nd edition of the Universities Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball tournament.
THE COUNTRY’S RIVALS IN THE BILLIARDS competitions of the 21st Southeast Asian Games in Laos have good reasons to cower in fear. Why?
PHILIPPINE SPORTS COMMISSION CHAIR Harry Angping is not encouraging the “have-money-will-travel” policy for the Filipino athletes competing in this year’s Laos Southeast Asian Games.
PHILIPPINE BASKETBALL IS IN A STATE of distress. A win-win solution to the misunderstanding between the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas and the Basketball Association of the Philippines is unlikely because their top officials are always locked in conflict.
THE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR OF FAR EASTERN University, host of this year’s 72 season of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, is not against the inclusion of amateur boxing in the UAAP sports calendar.
THE SUPREME COURT recently ruled that the professional Philippine Basketball Association is liable to pay the Games and Amusements Board about P3.45 million representing the government agency’s 3 percent share of gross income from the radio-TV coverage of PBA games for 2002.
EQUESTRIAN ASSOCIATION of the Philippines president Party-list Rep. Ma. Carissa Coscolluela is embarking on a four-year training, competition and horse management program aimed at uplifting the sport.
Diehard billiards fans are keenly awaiting the staging of our own version of the “Battle of the Sexes” which pits newly crowned World Women’s 10-Ball champion Rubilen Amit against her male counterparts.
I ADMIRE national team coach Yeng Guiao for being realistic.
THE EMBATTLED Philippine Olympic Committee, then known as the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation, wasn’t set up to have one group at the throat of another. It wasn’t meant to create chaos and sow confusion in sports, like what is happening today.
THE STAGING of the Women's World 10-Ball Championship which gets going tomorrow at the SM City North is a breakthrough for women’s billiards in the country.
Despite being a no-show during a press launch last Saturday, boxing’s pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao has vowed to attend tomorrow’s Pacquiao Prestige Cup, a one-day, five-cock derby at the Big Dome.
ROTATION, the toughest game in billiards, returns to the scene when Hall of Famer Efren “Bata” Reyes and former double world champion Ronnie Alcano clash in a blockbuster matchup at the SM North Edsa in Quezon City on June 15.
Billed as the biggest, richest and most prestigious cockfighting event in the planet, the three-day World Slasher Cup II 8-Cock International Derby gets going tomorrow at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.
HIS UNEXPECTED EXIT FROM THE recent World Tenpin Masters in England notwithstanding, Filipino bowling legend Paeng Nepomuceno is still a force to be reckoned with in international tournaments.
NON-STOP action awaits cockfighting aficionados when the Pintakasi of Champions hosts the World Slasher Cup II 8-Cock International Derby at the Araneta Coliseum on May 12, 14, and 16.
I admire equestrienne Toni for her love of country and passion for the sport.
Ageless Efren "Bata" Reyes, a billiards player with humble beginnnings who is a source of pride and inspiration to the whole nation, has thrown his support behind Philippine Olympic Committee president Jose “Peping” Cojuangco Jr. and the members of the POC Executive Board.
ONE OF THE POWERS AND FUNCtions vested in the Philippine Olympic Committee is “to act as the final arbiter of all intra-NSA (national sports association) conflicts and disputes in case these could not be settled with the NSA’s processes and procedures.”
Multi-awarded rider Toni Leviste is set to announce her plans for equestrian in 2009.
As a longtime billiards fan, I suppose I can make a suggestion. To end once and for all the leadership issue now bugging the embattled Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines, the athletes who brought honor to the country should select the officials of the BSCP.
I know that many people will disagree with me for saying that politicians and sports do mix.
The past season was a bitch for billiards hero Francisco “Django” Bustamante. He last won a major tournament in January 2007 when he ruled the star-studded Derby City Classic Master of the Table in the United States.
All the controversies confronting local sports today are the result of the two-headed bureaucratic hydra—that is, the Philippine Olympic Committee and the Philippine Sports Commission.
MANILA, Philippines—Former world No. 1 player Dennis Orcollo, the major awardee for billiards in 2008 by the Philippine Sportswriters Association, is hell-bent on regaining his lofty ratings in 2009.
FOR the first time since 2005, when the country last hosted the Southeast Asian Games, the aging Rizal Memorial Sports Complex will be getting a facelift.
MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines is widely regarded in the world of billiards as one of the countries to reckon with in men’s play and, as such, is given automatic slots in almost all the major international tournaments.
MANILA, Philippines—Newly appointed Philippine Sports Commission chair Harry Angping is pressed for time to get things working at the government sports agency.
MANILA, Philippines—A joint venture between the Far Eastern University and The Medical City, the country’s first-ever Sports Performance and Rehabilitation Center (SPARC) was launched last January 20 at the technology building of FEU along Nicanor Reyes St. in Manila.
MANILA, Philippines—I touched base with POC president Jose “Peping” Cojuangco Jr. during a gathering of cockfighting aficionados recently at the Mandarin Oriental Suites of Gateway Mall at the Araneta Center in Cubao, Quezon City.
The biggest ever World Slasher Cup since 1963 awaits cockfighting enthusiasts as businessman-sportsman Jorge “Nene” Araneta announced a strong field of nearly 200 entries that will vie for fame and honor from Jan. 19 to 24 at the Araneta Coliseum.
MANILA, Philippines—Congratulations to the Philippine Sports Commission for launching the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame.
MANILA, Philippines—Congratulations to the Philippine Sports Commission for launching the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame.
MANILA, Philippines—The shadow of drug abuse has always loomed over sports. As a matter of fact, Tim Layden of Sports Illustrated once wrote that the problem is irresoluble, unless the science of detection someday fully catches up with the science of deception.
MANILA, Philippines—The best gift Harry Tañamor ever had this Christmas was winning the light flyweight gold medal at the inaugural AIBA World Cup of Boxing at the Megasport in Moscow.
MANILA, Philippines—Despite its worldwide popularity, bowling will find it hard to be included in future Olympic Games.
MANILA, Philippines—Heeding the letter-request of the country’s top players and billiards supporters, the Philippine Olympic Committee has directed the Billiards and Snookers Congress of the Philippines to put on hold its general membership meeting-election originally scheduled for Dec. 5 at the Makati Sports Club.
The PCSO Presidential Gold Cup turns 36 years old this year. And to mark the celebration, five Triple Crown leg winners and two other topnotch horses are competing in this year-ending blockbuster which stakes a total of P2.3 million.
In my view, billiards is one sport where age does not matter in order for one to excel.
This year’s celebration of the Marho Breeders’ Cup, one of the country’s hottest and richest horseracing events, wraps up on Sunday at the Santa Ana Park in Makati City.
As a fitting tribute to the members of the National Press Club, the Philippine Racing Commission is sponsoring the 1st NPC Stakes race on Friday, Nov. 21, two days before the blockbuster Marho Breeders’ Cup weekend at the Santa Ana Park.
Filipino cue artists once again proved that you win in billiards not only through inborn grace and intelligence, but most of all through experience.
Feeling super fit this time, Dennis Orcollo has vowed to make a strong comeback during the Grand Finals of this year’s Guinness 9-Ball Tour on Oct. 24 to 26 at Mal Taman Anggrek in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The Philippines is first-class when it comes to billiards. Previously associated with gamblers, hustlers and truants, billiards is now widely respected and accepted by society as a sport that requires natural talent
MANILA, Philippines—Based on his record, Serbian basketball coach Rajko Toroman is good, but he's no magician.
MANILA, Philippines—Yeng Guiao has joined the handful of coaches from the Philippine Basketball Association who have been tasked to handle the national cage team. But is he ready for the tough job ahead?
Something’s seriously wrong in the Philippine billiards scene. After the formation of the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP) early last February, many of the country’s most outstanding billiards players are not taking part in this year’s inaugural World 10-Ball Championship
MANILA, Philippines—The widow of basketball Olympian Ponciano “Pons” Saldaña has donated to the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame the ball and bronze medal which the Philippine team won in the 1954 World Basketball Championship in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines’ top women billiards players, Iris Rañola and Rubilen Amit, are making big strides in the world of pool.
MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine contingent to the 29th Olympiad in Beijing returned home empty-handed again and everyone wondered why.
MANILA, Philippines—First of all, I want to make it clear that I have absolutely nothing against the athletes we sent to the just-ended 29th Olympiad in Beijing.
MANILA, Philippines—Host nation China, which spent a mind-boggling $40 billion to host the 29th edition of the ongoing Olympic Games in Beijing, is taking a big step toward capturing its first Olympic overall title by staying ahead of perennial winner the United States in the gold-medal race.
MANILA, Philippines—Battle-tested Harry Tañamor launches his bid for Olympic glory against a virtually unknown opponent from Ghana as light flyweight boxing competitions begin Wednesday in the 29th Olympic Games in Beijing.
MANILA, Philippines—Everything is in readiness for Friday’s opening of the 29th Olympic Games in Beijing, considered as the most expensive sporting event in modern times.
MANILA, Philippines—The amazing victory last Sunday of former World Pool champion Alex Pagulayan over world No. 1 Dennis Orcollo in an all-Filipino final in the Singapore leg of the 2008 Guinness 9-Ball Tour showed once more that the Philippines is set to regain billiards supremacy from rival Chinese Taipei.
MANILA, Philippines—During a congressional hearing on sports a few years back, multi-titled bowler Paeng Nepomuceno expressed his disappointment over the lawmakers’ little regard for bowling, a non-Olympic sport, by rating it well below sports in the Olympic calendar.
MANILA, Philippines—Snatching victory from the jaws of defeat, No. 2 seed Rafael Nadal won his first Wimbledon title, outlasting top-ranked Roger Federer last Sunday (Monday in Manila), 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7, in a marathon 4-hour, 48-minute match.
MANILA, Philippines—Whether or not China wins a gold medal in tennis, a sport which does not enjoy popular following in the world’s most populous country, I say that Chinese netters, especially the women, will be a force to reckon with in the coming Beijing Olympic Games.
MANILA, Philippines—The star-studded United States Olympic basketball team is set to recover lost prestige in this year’s Beijing Olympic Games.
MANILA, Philippines—Since he assumed the commissionership of the Philippine Basketball Association early this year, the league’s fortunes have improved.
MANILA, Philippines—I abhor the propensity of sports officials to seek a TRO (temporary restraining order) from the court every time there is a dispute in sports.
MANILA, Philippines—Alex “The Lion” Pagulayan, who won the World Pool Championship in 2004, is the man to watch in the Cebu leg of the Senate President Manny Villar Billiards Cup at the Atrium of SM City Cebu on June 20 to 22.
MANILA, Philippines—The dispute between a group of parents of swimmers and Philippine Amateur Swimming Association president Mark Joseph is hurting the sport of swimming.
The Philippines’ lone Olympic boxing qualifier, light flyweight Harry Tañamor, makes a do-or-die appearance in this year’s Beijing Olympic Games. And despite high expectations from local sports officials, some cynics say that Tañamor, who is pushing 30, is not in the league of the world’s best and toughest boxers.
MANILA, Philippines—Despite last Sunday’s 101-90 loss to the Alaska Aces, coach Yeng Guiao of the Red Bull Barako is still the man to watch in the ongoing Smart-PBA Fiesta Conference.
MANILA, Philippines—Humble and unassuming Efren “Bata” Reyes is the greatest and most written-about billiards player in recent sports history.
MANILA, Philippines—I have no problem with our obsession with basketball, but I feel that our fascination with it is destroying the development of other sports in our strife-torn country.
MANILA, Philippines—Attitude and strong personal discipline are two of the reasons why Chinese athletes loom as the heavy favorites to rule the 29th Olympic Games in Beijing.
MANILA, Philippines—There was a time in Philippine sports when Filipino basketball players reigned supreme in Asia. In fact, Filipino players were almost at par with their American and European counterparts.
MANILA, Philippines—Who is better when it comes to billiards: Taiwan or the Philippines?
MANILA, Philippines—There is no question that the unrest in Tibet is hurting the Chinese government and giving organizers of this year’s Beijing Olympics sleepless nights.
MANILA, Philippines—Before Manny Pacquiao, the late Gabriel “Flash” Elorde was the most celebrated boxer in Philippine sports history.
MANILA, Philippines—I agree with William “Butch” Ramirez who said that our amateur boxers will be facing a tough task in the ongoing second and final Asian Olympic boxing tournament in Kazakhstan.
MANILA, Philippines—As a longtime PBA fan, I have noticed the low turnout in recent Philippine Basketball Association games compared with the usual large crowds in the past.
MANILA, Philippines -- In April 1995, the International Dance Sport Federation (IDSF) announced that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has granted provisional IOC recognition to dance sport or ballroom dancing.
MANILA, Philippines -- I salute Nokia and Tao Corp. for bankrolling the RP Youth Team, hoping to restore the good old days when the Philippines was the undisputed basketball champion of Asia.
MANILA, Philippines -- I missed last Saturday’s San Miguel Corp.-PSA Awards Night at the SM Mall of Asia where swimmer Miguel Molina and boxer Nonito Donaire Jr. were honored as Athletes of the Year, and the business firms and organizations who did us proud in 2007 were given citations.
MANILA, Philippines -- There is no denying that billiards has taken a big step in lifting its status from a sport previously associated with gamblers, hustlers and truants.
MANILA, Philippines -- I find it futile to totally ban cockfighting in the Philippines because there is no popular opposition to the game yet among Filipinos, unlike in the United States where the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a force to reckon with.
MANILA, Philippines -- This is no brief for a new health product that hit the market only recently, but I say it is worth giving it a try because the product when worn, helps improve blood circulation, promotes the natural healing process of the body and enhances performance.
MANILA, Philippines -- Years of dreaming, planning and working will finally yield handsome results with the construction of a sports museum that could pave the way for the creation of a first-ever Philippine Sports Hall of Fame.
MANILA, Philippines -- As far as the bayang karerista is concerned, what the Philippine Racing Commission (Philracom) needs at the moment is someone who really loves and understands the sport, not just anybody who could some day throw his weight around because of his closeness to the powers-that-be.
The government should not dilly-dally in resolving the “boycott” staged by leaders of the three big horse racing organizations which forced the cancellation of the races last weekend -- for the first time in 50 years -- at the Santa Ana Park and threatened this week’s racing program at the San Lazaro Leisure Park.
MANILA, Philippines—“My Memoirs,” a forthcoming publication written by retired Col. Julian Malonso, educator, former president of the Philippine Olympic Committee and staunch defender of the Olympic Movement, is a down-to-earth and informative book.
MANILA, Philippines -- The country’s embarrassing sixth-place finish in the 24th Southeast Asian Games in Thailand is proof enough that there is no salvation for Philippine sports without government support.
HERE IS A CONTINUATION TO THE list of Filipino basketball Olympians as requested by reader Isabelo Filomeno of Cagayan de Oro City.
MANILA, Philippines -- Several weeks ago, reader Isabelo Filomeno of Cagayan de Oro City wrote this corner requesting for a list of Filipino basketball Olympians from 1936 up to the time we last played in the Olympic Games.
MANILA, Philippines -- Shortly after he was elected president of the Philippine Olympic Committee in 2004, former Tarlac Rep. Jose “Peping” Cojuangco promised that “building a new stadium is a top priority in my POC presidency.”
MANILA, Philippines -- Soft-spoken and always affable Angel Nepomuceno, father-coach of bowling great Paeng Nepomuceno, has been in hospital due to a hip fracture he suffered at home a week ago.
MANILA, Philippines -- Since the unsinkable Jose Sulaiman took over as president of the World Boxing Council in 1975, the organization has not changed leadership.
Four-time Bowling World Cup champion Rafael “Paeng” Nepomuceno will demonstrate his tenpin bowling savvy during a bowling tournament of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP)-Bulacan chapter and Bulacan Court Employees Association (Bulcea) at 3 p.m. on Nov. 16 at the Paradise Resort in Malolos City.
MANILA, Philippines -- Bacolod Rep. Monico Puentevella, a former commissioner of the Philippine Sports Commission, has filed House Bill 2485 amending certain provisions of Republic Act 9064, or the Sports Incentives Act.
MANILA, Philippines -- I would like to apologize to the readers for failing to acknowledge their letters on time. It’s because I seldom go to the office to pick up my mails.
MANILA, Philippines -- The members of the Philippine Basketball Association board should nip in the bud a reported proposal to limit the age of their incoming commissioner to between 42 and 48 years old.
While it is too early to talk about it, I say prospects look good for San Beda College, the back-to-back National Collegiate Athletic Association champion, to score a “three-peat” and relive the good old days in the 1950s when the legendary Carlos “Caloy” Loyzaga led the Red Lions to three titles.
MANILA, Philippines -- Defending champion San Beda College is the prohibitive favorite over Colegio San Juan de Letran in Wednesday’s Game 2 of the NCAA senior basketball best-of-three title series at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
MANILA, Philippines -- I agree with PSC chair William “Butch” Ramirez who broached the idea of reviving the mothballed Philippine National Games.
MANILA, Philippines -- I feel utterly frustrated by the fact that our battle-tested billiards players, supposedly the cream of the crop, did not win a single leg in the recent Guinness 9-Ball Tour.
MANILA, Philippines -- Last Wednesday, Far Eastern University held the induction ceremonies for the school’s 36 outstanding athletes who were the first honorees in the Sports Hall of Fame at the FEU auditorium.
MANILA, Philippines -- There is no question that Carlos “Caloy” Loyzaga is the greatest Filipino basketball player in history, but little else is known about how he started his checkered career.
MANILA, Philippines -- Even now, politics remains the bane of sports. Just recently, the International Baseball Federation canceled this year’s World Junior Baseball Championship because host country Venezuela refused to issue visas to Taiwanese players for political reasons.
MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine Basketball Association is in the process of selecting a new commissioner to replace Noli Eala, who resigned last Tuesday following his recent disbarment by the Supreme Court for “gross immorality.”
MANILA, Philippines -- After all is said and done, local sports officials should now accept the naked truth that basketball is not for Filipinos because height is the big factor in the sport. We should know our limitations.
MANILA, Philippines -- What more can I say? The brain injury suffered recently by Filipino boxer Czar Amonsot emphasized once more the hazards of professional boxing.
After a long absence from the local sports scene, Efren “Bata” Reyes, who is generally acclaimed as “The Finest Pool Player on Earth,” will strut his savvy once more during the Sargo’s Golden Classics starting on Aug. 4 at the Bugsy’s Lair Billiards Hall on Sgt. Esguerra Street in the Timog area of Quezon City.
MANILA, Philippines -- When the 14th Congress opens on July 23, one of the measures that lawmakers should consider amending is Republic Act No. 9064.
MANILA, Philippines -- I agree with a lot of people who oppose the plan of the Philippine Basketball Association to make the Manila Zoo the permanent site of the PBA.
MANILA, Philippines -- This is no brief for Philippine Sports Commission chair William “Butch” Ramirez and the PSC commissioners, but effecting a revamp at the agency is not good because that will only throw off course the country’s sports development program.
MANILA, Philippines -- It is distressing to know that the some of the biggest and most profitable business firms in the Philippines have yet to come to the aid of amateur boxing, the country’s brightest hope to win an Olympic gold next year in Beijing.
MANILA, Philippines -- As far as I am concerned, there is no reason for Team Philippines to celebrate just because Thailand, host of this year’s 24th Southeast Asian Games, has added 46 more events to the SEAG calendar.
MANILA, Philippines -- Father Antonio Barona, who was the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) president in 1932-1933, will be beatified in Rome on Oct. 28 this year.
MANILA, Philippines -- During the last election campaign, several candidates promised to support sports, among them former senator Loren Legarda and three-term Sorsogon Rep. Francis “Chiz” Escudero -- two candidates of the Genuine Opposition who lead the senatorial derby by the proverbial mile.
MANILA, Philippines -- There are two major reasons why defending overall champion Philippines will lose to host Thailand in this year’s edition of the Southeast Asian Games this December.
MANILA, Philippines -- I am glad to know that the horse racing community recently honored the country’s forgotten jockeys, including the veteran Elpidio S. Aguila and the battle-tested Jesus C. Guce, who suffered serious injuries while riding their mounts.
MANILA, Philippines -- The fund-raising campaign of the Philippine Sports Commission for the country’s bets to the 2008 Beijing Olympics has been moved to a date after the May 14 elections or, after First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo has completely recovered from a recent open-heart surgery.
MANILA, Philippines -- The Games and Amusements Board should show more teeth in dealing with those responsible for bringing Lito Sisnorio to Thailand without a GAB permit.
MANILA, Philippines -- I beg to disagree with sports officials who said recently that the “dark days of Philippine basketball are finally over” following the country’s return to the FIBA (international basketball federation).
MANILA, Philippines -- The country’s foremost woman billiards player, Rubilen Amit, has finally arrived, scoring upset wins over reigning champion Kim Ga-young of South Korea and former world titlist Allison Fisher of Britain in the recent Amway WPA Women’s 9-Ball Championship in Taipei.
MANILA, Philippines -- The recent death of Filipino boxer Angelito “Lito” Sisnorio underscores once more the cruelty of professional boxing.
MANILA, Philippines -- “Malinis ang konsensiya namin (Our conscience is clear).”
MANILA, Philippines -- There’s trouble brewing between a group of horse owners and the Philippine Racing Commission. Who is right and who is wrong?
MANILA, Philippines -- I welcome the good news that the Philippine Sportswriters Association under the stewardship of Aldrin Cardona of the Tribune will revive the PSA Fiesta Fistiana benefit boxing card on April 29 at the Rajah Sulayman Park in Manila.
MANILA, Philippines -- The horseracing industry is falling apart. For example, many big-time horse owners, unhappy with the new handicapping system of the Philippine Racing Commission which will be implemented on April 1, recently boycotted the races.
MANILA, Philippines -- More and more people are expressing their opposition to Manny Pacquiao throwing his hat into the political arena.
MANILA, Philippines -- I was disheartened to know that, despite its huge income, the Philippine Race Horse Trainers Association could not even meet the basic needs of its members, including their hospitalization expenses.
MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippines should field an all-professional team in the Southeast Asian Basketball Association championships if we want to put up a good fight.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - One of the rallying points that inspire all Filipinos is sports. No field of human activity presents more opportunities for satisfying this need to inspire us than sports.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - WHEN BARON DE COUBERTIN first developed his vision of the Modern Olympic Games more than a century ago, his thinking went far beyond merely the establishment of an international sporting event.
MANOLO R. INIGO - RETIREMENT was never a realistic option for low-profile businessman Dilip Budhrani, founder and commissioner of the fledgling Filipino Indian Basketball League.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - Organized by a group of business-civic leaders headed by Becky Garcia, DSCP has joined the Germany-based International Dance Sport Federation, the ruling body for amateur dance, and the World Dance and Dance Sport Council, the governing body for professional dance with headquarters in London.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - NEWLY CROWNED World Pool champion Ronnie “Calamba” Alcano is the ideal replacement when age and other human factors finally catch up with Efren “Bata” Reyes and Francisco “Django” Bustamante.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - PHILIPPINE Sports Commission chairman William “Butch” Ramirez need not step down as head of the PSC because his resignation will not sustain the development of sports in the country. In my view, the frequent changes in the PSC leadership is one reason why Philippine sports is not making any progress.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THIS ISN’T just hindsight. before an athlete becomes truly successful in sports, he or she must not only be physically fit but also morally sound.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - CHANCES are better than before that a Filipino will win the 2006 World Pool Championship which begins tomorrow at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - I WOULD LIKE to congratulate the winners led by Reynaldo Navarro and the organizers of last Sunday’s Victorey Tour de Tercero Cycling Classic which featured Pangasinan’s top professional and amateur bikers in a 168-kilometer race around the six towns and city of San Carlos.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - IT’S NONE of my business meddling in the affairs of American entrepreneur Kevin Trudeau, but I’m writing about him just the same mainly because he is the organizer of the International Pool Tour.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - Go Teng Kok, the controversial president of the national athletics association, denied reports about his alleged involvement in moves to reinstate the Basketball Association of the Philippines in the Philippine Olympic Committee.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - HIS NAME may not ring a bell to many Filipino sports fans, but to the legions of billiards enthusiasts Kevin Trudeau will be remembered as the man who organized last month’s 2006 International Pool Tour (IPT) World 8-Ball Open in Reno, Nevada, where Efren “Bata” Reyes won a fat paycheck worth $500,000
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THE PHILIPPINES was suspended last year by the international basketball federation (FIBA), which said it could not accept the decision of the Philippine Olympic Committee to expel the Basketball Association of the Philippines, a longtime FIBA member, in favor of another group.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THROUGHOUT my long career as a sports journalist, I have always batted for adequate funding from the government to help the various national sports associations, whose coffers are always empty.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - LESS THAN two months before this year’s Doha Asian Games on Dec. 1-15, Philippine team officials are still having a hard time raising the extra funds needed by the athletes and coaches who are taking part in the quadrennial meet.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - IN A GAME filled with drama, emotion and nail-biting exchanges of shots the UST Growling Tigers won the 69th University Athletic Association of the Philippines varsity championship by nosing out the hard-fighting Ateneo Blue Eagles in overtime.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - AS A LONGTIME follower of the Asian Games, I suppose I can complain. Why did the Philippines skip the water polo and softball events of the Doha Asiad on Dec. 1-15? What on earth is wrong with our sports officials?
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - FILIPINO DANCE athletes, who swept the gold medals in last year’s Southeast Asian Games, have continued their winning ways by capturing the gold and silver medals in the United States and making the elite finals of the International Dance Sport Federation championships held in Singapore and Macau.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - HORSE OWNER Hermie Esguerra has done it again. This time, the popular sportsman from Plaridel, Bulacan, scored a rare sweep last Sunday when all his four entries won their respective races at the San Lazaro Leisure Park in Carmona, Cavite.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THE ABSENCE of Efren “Bata” Reyes and Francisco “Django” Bustamante from the national team that will see action in the Doha Asian Games on Dec. 1-15 will be hardly felt because the Philippines is fortunate to have a deep and strong bench capable of winning medals in the quadrennial meet.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - SOFT-SPOKEN Efren “Bata” Reyes has persevered through adversity and now ranks as the world’s greatest billiards player.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THE SETBACK suffered by Francisco “Django” Bustamante in the cash-rich $3 million International Pool Tour World 8-Ball Open in Reno, Nevada, on Saturday broke our hearts, but as far as I am concerned he is still one of the best and toughest in the world.
MANOLO R. INIGO - AS A BASKETBALL fan myself, I say the United States -- despite finishing only third in the last FIBA World Championship in Japan -- is still a clear choice to win next year’s Tournament of the Americas in Venezuela and qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - I COULD BE WRONG, but past statistics showed that attendance in the games of the Philippine Basketball Association dropped dramatically after each debacle in the Asian Games, starting in Beijing in 1990.
MANOLO IÑIGO - Ranged against the best and the toughest, the amazing Reyes-Bustamante tandem swept the field, beating the American pair of Earl “The Pearl” Strickland and former US Open champion Rodney Morris, 13-5, in Sunday night’s finals and pocketing the first prize of $60,000.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - I WAS ASKED recently by the hosts of GamePlan to rank the greatest UAAP basketball teams of all time as part of their Sunday telecast of the ongoing 69th season of the University Athletics Association of the Philippines.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - HAVING repeatedly watched the telecast of this year’s Japan FIBA World Championship, I am convinced more than ever that now is the time for Filipino sports officials to reconsider their lofty plan of regaining the country’s past glory in the international basketball arena.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THE FIRST EVER World Cup of Pool, a 9-ball team event featuring the top two players from 32 countries, gets going tomorrow at the Newport Center in Newport, South Wales, England, with Filipino billiards greats Efren “Bata” Reyes and Francisco “Django” Bustamante representing the Philippines.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - FOR THE sake of the country and the Filipino youth, I appeal to the Philippine Olympic Committee to reconsider its expulsion of the Basketball Association of the Philippines so our aspiring players will get the opportunity to compete in this year’s Doha Asian Games.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - AS EXPECTED, champion horse Real Spicy, owned by popular sportsman Hermie Esguerra, is setting the pace in this year’s money derby.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - I WAS ELATED to read recently that a top official of the Department of Education has ruled out the inclusion of boxing in Physical Education (PE) classes in the country’s elementary and public high schools.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - BOXING HERO Manny Pacquiao should put on hold his plan to run for vice mayor of Manila next year. His life has become this big because of boxing. He should stick to it and make hay while the sun still shines.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - FROM THE blond hair to the prominent nose, new world 8-ball champion Thorsten “The Hitman” Hohmann looks every inch a German.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - WILL THE FILIPINOS swim or sink in the harbor city of Kaohsiung during the third leg of the 2006 San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour on Aug. 4-6?
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THE COMMON problem of every Philippine delegation to an international sporting event like the Asian Games is funding.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - I AGREE with the fearless forecast that a Filipino will win again this year’s blue-ribbon $2 million International Pool Tour (IPT) 8-Ball Championship which got going Monday (Tuesday in Manila) at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - I WAS ASTOUNDED to read a report the other day that top officials of the Department of Education, headed by DepEd officer-in-charge Fe Hidalgo, are considering the inclusion of boxing in the public school curriculum.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - THE STIRRING victories of Filipino jungolfers Dottie Ardina, Cyna Rodriguez and Mia Legaspi in last week’s Callaway Junior World Golf Championships in San Diego, California, and the euphoria over the just-ended FIFA World Cup in Germany.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - UP TO NOW, I am missing the annual Coke Go-for-Goal tournament which was shelved a few years back despite the event’s good start and the organizers’ high hopes.
MANOLO R. IÑIGO - BILLIARDS champion Efren “Bata” Reyes has been around so long that many refer to him as a father figure. When asked why he keeps on playing, Reyes merely smiled and said, "I just enjoy the game."
BURIED in the inside pages of the newspapers is the story about House Bill 5069 aimed at protecting the welfare of the country’s professional boxers.
THE NEWLY appointed Philippine Racing Commission chair, retired police Gen. Florencio Fianza, is cool, confident and thoroughly straightforward.
GHANA, which has no household names in the sport of football, is by far the most accomplished African nation in the 2006 FIFA World Cup: It qualified for the round of 16 by posting two well-deserved victories in Cologne, Germany.
THE STATE of amateur boxing in the country is hard to explain. There is no question that amateur boxing is one sport that is best suited for Filipinos because there is no height advantage.
ISN’T IT odd that the Basketball Association of the Philippines is recognized by the international basketball federation (FIBA) but not by its mother association, the Philippine Olympic Committee?
BASED ON his most recent performance and purely on form, Don Exequiel, a handsome chestnut colt by Bench Mark out of Belle Epoque, looms as the hot favorite to win this Sunday’s JV Ongpin Cup, second leg of the 2006 Triple Crown Series, at the Santa Ana Park in Makati City.
TRIATHLON president Tom Carrasco, a member of the Asian Games Task Force, admitted recently that Filipino athletes training for this year’s Doha Asiad are behind schedule in their preparation for the quadrennial meet.
PEOPLE know the new chair of the Philippine Racing Commission, retired Gen. Florencio Fianza, as the military man who headed the transportation support services of last year’s Southeast Asian Games.
IT WILL be make-or-break for Philippine basketball when a powerhouse delegation meets FIBA secretary general Patrick Baumann in Seoul tomorrow to seek recognition for the newly formed Pilipinas Basketball and plead for the immediate lifting of the nine-month-old FIBA ban on the country.
