G. Wheel Awards tonite; Chua to be feted

MANILA, Philippines—His stamp of authority is virtually on every major race track in the country.

Edgar O. Chua, a prime mover of local motorsports for decades, has transformed car racing in the country by pushing for the construction of race tracks instead of just settling for makeshift courses.

And it’s for this effort that Chua will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award during the 12th Golden Wheel Awards tonight at Samsung Hall of SM Aura in Taguig City.

The invaluable contributions of Chua—a top executive of Pilipinas Shell, which has staged numerous racing events—has resulted in the creation of the Carmona Circuit Philippines in Laguna, the Batangas Racing Circuit in Rosario, the Clark International Speedway in Pampanga and the upcoming Sta. Monica track in Puerto Princesa City.

Chua was also behind the numerous racing events backed by Shell, starting with the Shell Karting Super Series in 1992.

Through Chua, the Shell Eco-Marathon has also been staged in the country starting in 2014 where 120 participants from Asian universities competed in different categories.

Chua will be honored together with Hall of Fame awardee Ramon Rodriguez and the champions from various racing disciplines, where one will be named as Golden Wheel Driver of the Year.  Jasmine W. Payo