International sports stars show support to victims of “Sendong”

MANILA, Philippines—International sports stars rushed to express their sympathy to the victims of the destructive Tropical Storm “Sendong,” which unleashed its wrath in Mindanao over the weekend.

With more than a thousand dead and still hundreds missing in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities, the news of another tragedy in the Philippines also stunned the entire world.

Danilo Gallinari, the Italian streak shooter from Denver Nuggets in the NBA, picked up on the tragic news on the internet and offered a prayer.

“Reading the news about the Philippines. Un pensiero e una preghiera per tutte le vittime (a thought and a prayer for all the victims),” said Gallinari (@gallinari8888).

Pau Gasol, who had a scheduled visit to Philippines but cancelled as the dragging NBA lockout came to a close early this December, shared his support through Twitter.

“All my support to the families in Mindanao who have been affected by the tropical storm ‘Sendong,’” tweeted the Los Angeles Lakers’ star center (@paugasol).

Gasol has always been fond of his Filipino fans on Twitter, even posting a video blog just to apologize for cancelling his supposed trip here.

L.A. Galaxy’s star striker Landon Donovan, who admitted to have fallen in love with the country after his brief stint here with his squad, also didn’t hesitate to send out his regards.

“My god, just heard about the flooding in the Philippines. Devastated. So sorry and know that we are thinking about you all. Mahal (Love),” said Donovan (@landondonovan).

Donovan’s teammate, AJ DelaGarza, also tweeted: “Prayers to those in the Philippines that were affected by the storm.”

Veteran American boxing sportswriter Kevin Iole, who has been covering Pacquiao fights in the past decade, also took part in helping out by posting website links where cash donations could be made.

“Do you have a link so I could donate? That’s an awful tragedy,” Iole posted.

The disaster in Mindanao was met by overwhelming support online—especially on the social network site Twitter—with information on the donation centers, dropoff points and other details easily disseminated.