Cebu Sports Blog by John Pages

Aboitiz and Sports: Passion For Better Ways

If you play the sport of Elin Nordegren’s husband, as hundreds of us from Cebu do, then you must escape from work today and tomorrow. Seriously, you must. You ought to sprint to the Cebu Country Club; spend one, three, 14 hours there. It’s not a waste of time. It’s valuable time spent.

The reason: The Aboitiz Invitational Golf Championship. Sponsored by the most influential and respected brand and family name in Cebu—Aboitiz—this event is a must-see, never-to-be-missed spectacle. It’s three days, 54 holes and 16,368 shots of spectacular golf.

Take my experience. Yesterday, I watched Angelo Que. If you don’t swing that 5-iron, you might ask, “Angelo who?” But if you follow this sport of Louis Oosthuizen then, surely, you’ll say, “Yes, the golf champ… Angelo Que.”

I shook his hand. Observed his phenomenal drive. With my tennis buddy Macky Michael (an 8-handicap golfer) driving the wheels of the golf cart, we caught Angelo at the 10th hole. It was 2:45 in the afternoon. Then, at the 11th hole tee mound, we watched. Wearing a white shirt, white cap, beige pants, white shoes and donning red, one-way sunglasses, the 31-year-old readied to swing from the tee. BANG! I’ve never seen anyone hit harder. Then, minutes later when we inspected his shot, in the 513-yard Hole No. 11 of the CCC, his ball landed 180 yards from the pin. Macky’s estimate: He drilled that dimpled ball 330 yards away.

Waiting near the 11th hole green (and thanks to the quick introduction by fellow Cebuano Oliver Ong), I got to shake Angelo Que’s hand before he walked to the green. “Bad luck handshake,” I call it, because while he was putting for eagle, he missed… and missed… settling for a three-putt and a disappointing par.

From Sun.Star Cebu

Toby Florendo was there. While we chatted, someone shouted “FORE!” We covered our heads. In a millisecond—smack!—the ball hit. Not Toby, but just a foot away, one of the player’s golf bags. It was funny. Scary. And, as Macky pointed out, would have made this article’s Headline News had Toby been struck.

The Aboitiz Golf is a contest you and I should watch. Why? Simple. How often do these Manny Pacquiaos of Golf visit our land? Take Frankie Miñoza. You know him, right? Of course. Who doesn’t? Well, he’s here. Yes. No, he’s not in Japan, where he’s supposed to be playing—but here in Banilad, like he was yesterday, wearing a blue shirt and munching his snacks with Clifford Celdran and Montito Garcia after his 3-under first round.

Vying for the P200,000 first prize (out of the total P1 million) are many of our country’s best, including names we only read about in the national newspapers: Juvic Pagunsan, Artemio Murakami, Jay Bayron, Mars Pucay, and the reigning Philippine Open winner, Elmer Salvador. Another attraction who’s here is Chris Rodgers. Just last weekend, the Briton and Angelo Que finished tied for first place in Malaysia—until Angelo, our 2008 RP Open champion, beat Rodgers in a playoff.

The Aboitiz Invitational is Cebu’s first and the 10th leg of the 14-stage circuit named the ICTSI-Philippine Golf Tour. Armed with a P2.5 million budget, the Aboitizes made sure this event was first-rate.

“We were given a dozen golf balls, a Nike cap, water bottles and other items, our green fees were paid for, same with free breakfast and lunch, plus two golf carts were issued per flight and all caddy fees were sponsored,” said Macky Michael, who was in the same flight with the father-and-son Anton and Toby Florendo and pro Richard Sinfuego during the Aboitiz Pro-Am tournament held last Tuesday.

“Aboitiz is here to help sports. We love sports,” said Basti Lacson, the 6-footer Chief Reputation Officer of the Aboitiz Equity Ventures, when we met yesterday at the Country Club veranda.

Thanks to this dynamic 90-year-old company named Aboitiz, RP’s best in golf are in town. Let’s watch!

SMB’s beer vs. Alaska’s milk: Who’s winning?

The Philippine Basketball Association is the second oldest basketball league in the world, next only to the NBA. Since its inception on April 9, 1975—coincidentally, my third birthday!—it has become the most revered of games in our basketball-crazy nation.

Last Sunday, I watched. Not at the Araneta Coliseum, nicknamed “The Big Dome”—but at home. For two hours starting at 6 p.m., two of our most famous brands played ball: the San Miguel Beermen versus the Alaska Aces. It was Game 2 of the 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference. (The league has two conferences per season; this is the one where one import is allowed per team.)

In Game One of The PBA Final played last Friday, Alaska was supposed-to-be tired and weary, having just escaped Talk ‘N Text in a seven-game semifinal. It didn’t show. They beat San Miguel, 89-83. What a shocker. And for several reasons: (1) The SMB squad are the defending champions; (2) Alaska lost to them twice during the regular season (95-89 on April 11 and 85-74 last June 26); (3) Alaska had not beaten SMB in their last six tries, dating back to 2007; (4) Alaska was on a losing streak in The Finals: six straight defeats. Yet, Alaska prevailed in round one.

Then, Game 2. Two nights ago. San Miguel Beer—an original member of the PBA since 1975 and the winningest club in history with 18 PBA titles—fought to avert a 0-2 deficit. Their coach, Siot Tanquingcen, only 37 years young, deployed Joseph Yeo and import Jay Washington to produce the numbers. They did, scoring 20 apiece. But the Beermen played catch-up all night. Alaska led in the first quarter; SMB tied the game. Alaska took the lead; again, SMB crawled back. It was the same back-and-forth, see-saw pattern.. until the last minutes when Alaska—having gulped milk instead of beer—sprinted towards the finish line first, winning, 94-90.

I enjoyed the game. LA Tenorio, only 5-foot-8, was savvy and alert. Arwind Santos banked several against the board. My favorite play was the one of the tattoo-laden Alaska import Diamon Simpson who, at the end of the third quarter, backed up against his defender then leapt for a monstrous, in-your-face slam of a dunk.

All these must have thrilled the most famous spectator at ringside: Miami Heat coach Eric Spoelstra, who’s in Manila to conduct basketball clinics. “I was worried earlier,” said Alaska coach Tim Cone, quoting yesterday’s Phil. Star story entitled, “Charity throws give Aces close win, 2-0 lead.” “I just felt our energy in practice yesterday was very low. But thanks to coach Eric when my players heard he’s in the stadium, their eyes grew big and said ‘wow.’ They’re motivated.”

Alaska played inspired basketball. And when the pressure intensified in the game’s dying moments, they were relaxed and composed, especially at the free throw line—making seven of eight in the last 77 seconds and, for the whole game, shooting 84 percent—an extraordinary statistic that would shame Shaq.

“We didn’t expect this,” said Cone in yesterday’s Phil. Daily Inquirer article, “Unbelievable Aces halfway through Fiesta Cup crown.” “But you know, we have played two A-plus basketball games.”

Cone, now 52 years old and the winner of 12 PBA titles for the Fred Uytengsu-owned company, is hungry for this win.

Quinito Henson of The Phil. Star, in an August 6 piece, “San Miguel’s size worries Cone,” made this excellent analysis: “(Cone)… is due for another one as Alaska has been a bridesmaid in two of the last three finals. He hasn’t captured a crown since the 2006-07 Fiesta Conference. Alaska is in its 25th finals appearance entering its 25th anniversary next season. Those numbers don’t happen to come together by accident. Are the Aces destined for a championship?”

Despite the lead, he’s not overconfident. “It’s only 2-0,” said Cone. “It takes four games to win it for a reason. I’ve lost 2-0, 3-1 and all the leads that you can think of. We have to make sure we come out and put the pressure on them… It’s definitely not over.”

Abangan ang susunod na…

Sayang! How Cebu missed a mega-chance

If there’s one magazine I suggest you buy, it’s this: “A Tribute to The Legend.” On the cover, in black-and-white, is the Congressman from Sarangani raising his boxing gloves after another victorious fight. All of 73 pages of glossy photos and innumerable facts, if you’re a Manny Pacquiao fan—who isn’t except Antonio Margarito?—then you ought to visit Fully Booked or National Bookstore to get one. We know PacMan is the greatest Filipino athlete ever—and his heroics may never be surpassed. And so I consider this P299 booklet a collector’s item—something I’ll show my grandson 28 years from now.
MILO. This weekend and the next, a total of 5,000 girls and boys will kick in sepak takraw, glide through the blue water in swimming, flick their wrists in ping-pong, score a header like Spain’s football team, and smash an overhead badminton lob. It’s back. The 15th Milo Little Olympics, like it does for two Saturdays and Sundays each August, is in Cebu. In total, 207 schools will compete for the golden medallions. Thanks to Nestle.

FACEBOOK. Having resisted joining the cult for years, I finally relented three months ago. Today, like you, I’m one of 500,000,000 users of the most widespread social network in this planet. I don’t get to visit each day. But when I do, what do I do? I scan comments and browse photos. Just this week, I’ve learned a technique to upload multiple photos (I know, I’m a FB latecomer!). And so, to all those who joined last January’s Cebu City Marathon, I’ve posted in my FB never-before-released “01-10-10” photos. Check it out.

MEGADOME. Remember the time when Gov. Gwen Garcia’s father, Pablo Paras Garcia, was our Cebu governor? And how he proposed to build the Cebu Megadome? How I wished the current Representative of Cebu’s Second District made that a reality. Imagine Cebu with a world-class stadium? That’s air-conditioned? With comfortable seats? And electronic timing devices plus a giant LCD screen hanging at the center?

We wish. This thought came to mind while sweating at last Saturday’s opening of the Cesafi. Inside the oven called the Cebu Coliseum, there’s only this good news: you exercise by perspiring as much as the basketball players you’re watching.

I can’t blame the Coliseum owners, Frederick Ong and Atty. Gus Go. They’d have to invest hundreds of millions to cool our bodies and fully-rehabilitate this derelict structure. And the all-important three letters in business—ROI—does not look good. That’s why the Cebu Megadome was essential. We had the money. Pabling Garcia had the vision. Sadly, due to critics, due to the then-Provincial Board’s obstructionist tactics, what we have is the CICC. Good. But not good enough. The Megadome would have been far more productive. Imagine PBA games between San Miguel Beer and Alaska. Volleyball contests by short-shorts-wearing Brazilian hotties. Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal (hahaha). Futsal. Badminton’s Lin Dan vs. Lee Chong Wei. Lady Gaga in concert. All possible with the Megadome. Sayanga uy!

TIGER. What’s wrong with him? After winning seven of 11 at the Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio (LeBron’s hometown), what does Mr. Woods do? He shoots a 4-over 74 in Round One and, the next day, scores 2-over. Excluding his performance last night (RP time), he’s tied for 75th place out of 81. Unbelievable. Tiger is 6th… to the last!

Is it the impending divorce? The worldwide condemnation? Maybe. One thing’s for sure: Golf is mental and what’s damaged is the tissue found between Tiger’s ears. It used to be his strength. The CPU that his body accessed like a computer to win. Now, that CPU has malfunctioned. Inside, there’s a virus. And this disease inside his brain is affecting his putting… everything. And with TW about to lose the No.1 mantle to Phil Mickelson and with him turning 35 years old this December, can he still break it? I mean, his 14 majors overtake the 18 of Jack Nicklaus? While we thought this was 100 percent sure—before a Cadillac SUV smashed a tree—now, we’re unsure. So is Tiger. Mr. Unsure.

Boy Tiukinhoy is the David Stern of Cebu

Like the Commissioner of the National Basketball Association, who has been in command of the world’s most famous dribbling league since 1984, we have our own version in this Visayan land.

Yes. David Stern is to America what Felix Tiukinhoy is to our beloved Sugbu. Both are commissioners. Both serve as leaders of other organizations on a concurrent capacity: Mr. Stern as the Chairman of the Board of Columbia University; Mr. Tiukinhoy as President of food giant Virginia Food, Inc., makers of famous brands like El Rancho, Virginia, Champion and Winner. I like the last two VFI, Inc. brands. Don’t they speak of the league that Boy Tiukinhoy is leading? Turning ordinary teams into Champions and Winners?

As commissioner of the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc., (Cesafi), he lords over universities, colleges, high schools. In fact, Mr. Tiukinhoy is so alike Mr. Stern that, very often, he, too, is called Mister Stern. And by “Stern,” I mean the real definition of the word: strict, tough, stubborn. That’s stern. Like David Stern. That’s Boy Tiukinhoy.

As Cesafi’s overseer, he has to be. You can’t be weak or indecisive if you’re the skipper. As chieftain of Cebu’s top school-based sports league, you have to be stern. Exacting. Bossy. Inflexible. At times, harsh.

Remember last year? When players were caught playing games outside Cesafi’s parquet floors? And were terminated from continuing play? Despite the school’s pleadings and clamor for mercy? Boy, he was stern. He didn’t budge. The rules, he said, are simple: They. Are. The. Rules.

In email exchanges last week, I asked Boy Tiukinhoy this: How difficult and stress-filled is the job? Considering that, in another instance last Sunday, on just Day Two of the Cesafi 2010 season, the UV Baby Lancers did not show up at the Cebu Coliseum because, they said, “we didn’t know the schedule.”

BT fumed mad. Then he said: “The toughness of the job is part of the territory.”

A sports-lover all his life, he has been the Cesafi commissioner since Day 1… when the league started in 2001. Until today… Year 10. Prior to Cesafi, there was the CAAA, the Cebu Amateur Athletic Association. He, too, for the last five years of that league, was the commissioner.

Any satisfaction you get from this work? I ask. A stress-loaded job that, in case we Cebuanos did not know, does not pay him salary, not even P10 per year? “I consider my work as CESAFI Commissioner,” he said, “as a community service without any remuneration.”

How many Cebuanos, I want to know, are willing to forgo of their full-day weekends, of weeknights, of the relaxation that comes after work, to deal with the problems of Cesafi? Only Mr. Stern of Cebu.

“It’s another world for me when I enter the coliseum which is different from the business environment,” he said. “I find the job a pleasant experience which removes whatever stress I encounter from the office.”

That’s good to hear. Here’s another good message from him: “I would not be effective without the support of the Secretariat headed by Bernard Ricablanca, the Athletic Directors, the Officers and the Board of Directors.” This means he is no one-man show. He seeks help. Encourages teamwork. Consults the Board. Another good act? From this man who, despite his diminutive size, has giant responsibilities? It’s the addition of non-sports events.

“Academic and cultural events have been part of CESAFI since we started,” he said. “As commissioner, not only basketball but also other sport events were given importance. This year, we will give even more focus on academic and cultural events.” He sent me a long list of Cesafi events that I did not even know existed: Oration, Debate, Extemporaneous contests; Math, Science, Computer, Current Events, and Spelling Quizzes. There’s a Song Solo challenge, an essay-writing contest, and—this is amazing—a Sudoko competition.

Stern? Nah… he’s sterling.

Cebu sports will dance with Ed Hayco

Michael Lopez Rama, our Cebu City mayor, is correct. So is Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young. Same with yesterday’s assessment by my editor, Mike Limpag.

The choice of Edward Hayco as Chairman of the Cebu City Sports Commission (CCSC) is outstanding. Tasked to uplift sports among our one-million-strong city residents, Mr. Hayco has the necessary tools—and perfect dance steps—to boogie and waltz our way to gold with Cebu sports. Here’s why Ed is the right pick:

First, experience. The sport that Ed Hayco drumbeats—Dancesport—has become the pride of Cebu. For over 10 years now since he started training a handful of neophytes, the Dancesport Team Cebu City (DTCC) has reaped awards numbering hundreds, pocketed gold medals at the SEA Games, swayed foreign competitors to visit our land. Today, dancesport is hugely popular—in the barangays, at the Waterfront Cebu City Ballroom, among international dancers who rave about this city called “Cebu”—thanks to one man and his wife, Eleanor. Ed Hayco has the proven track record. He’s done it. His formula for success in dance he can duplicate in other sports. Our city, believe me, will strut to the beat of Mambo No. 5.

Two, grassroots. The often-overused term, what does this really mean? Said Ed in an interview I conducted with him last year: “Our goal (with dancesport) was to go down to the grassroots level,” he said. “And so, starting in 2003, we went to the barangays. Instead of the children coming to us at our preferred venue, we went to them. We started with a few, then we added more. We began holding free dance workshops during summer. As more children joined, summer was not enough. And so we expanded… and now include the out-of-school youth.” That’s grassroots. I’ve seen this myself. Last year, I visited the Hipodromo Sports Complex and witnessed girls and boys as young as eight years old swaying to the beat of the Chachacha, dancing the Jive. Some borrowed leather shoes, others rented skimpy dresses—all for the love of sport.

In “Dancing with Ed and Eleanor Hayco,” an article I wrote last September, I said, “For this is the open secret of Ed and Eleanor and why thousands of our youth—especially those in the inner barangays—now dance. It’s called charity. It’s called selflessness, helpfulness, generosity.”

Third, Ed is close to Mike Rama, Joy Young and is the favorite sportsman of Rep. Tommy Osmeña. This is important. For in sports, like in business, ideas are good… but become no good if funding is absent. Sports projects need pesos—thousands, millions. And, with his excellent relationships with our leaders, proposing champion sports projects—and getting funding for them—will be a cinch.

Fourth, Mr. Hayco himself is a success in business. A 51-year-old multimillionaire with entrepreneurial triumphs in the furniture industry, in food and restaurants, among many others, his connections to tap the support of the private sector—plus, his doling-out his own to help projects—are crucial.

Fifth, Ed is a terrific person. It’s hard to find a Cebuano who is more respectful, who forever-smiles, who listens, who’s humble. This is Edward Hayco. And because of this, it’s easy to see why he’s a success; why he’s able to convince company CEOs to help and to motivate the out-of-school youth to dance—because he’s a good person.

Sixth—and above all—having known him for many, many Augusts, the quality that makes Ed stand out tallest is not found in his resume of accomplishments—from having organized the 7,770-strong dancers who achieved for Cebu the Guinness World Record, or to his being the “Sportsman of the Year” of the 28th Cebu Sports Awards held last March.

His success comes from within. It’s called passion. Whatever endeavor confronts him—business, civic or sports-related—Ed Hayco doesn’t just extend a handshake to tackle the challenge. He embraces them.

Congratulations—and good luck—to our new sports chairman.

If 42K is not enough…

Contador wins, Lance exits

Can you believe this? After biking for 21 days ending last Sunday in Paris, after pedaling for 3,642 kilometers, after the winner logged-in a time of 91 hours, 58 minutes and 48 seconds on that Specialized-branded bike, the difference between the champion and runner-up is minuscule: Thirty nine seconds.

Yup. If you read aloud the above paragraph, it will take you 39 seconds. That’s the same length of time that separated the Tour de France champion, Alberto Contador, from the second-placer, Andy Schleck.

Contador finished with a time of 91h 58’ 48”. Schleck ended at 91h 59’ 27”. Imagine a winning-time difference of only 39 seconds! For, in Le Tour, Every Second Counts. (In fact, this winning gap is only the fourth closest in history. The record was the 1989 win by Greg LeMond over Laurent Fignon by eight seconds.)

The Tour de France is considered not only the Wimbledon of Cycling but also one of the toughest events on Earth. What did the 2010 race teach us? Plenty.

First, Alberto Contador is cycling’s Manny Pacquiao. He has won three of the last four TdFs (he was absent in 2008 because his team could not compete) and is only the fifth racer in history to win all three Grand Tours (France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España).

Two, with AC’s win, it reaffirmed the status of Spain as numero uno together with Rafa Nadal, the World Cup-winning football squad, Pau Gasol, and, two nights ago, Fernando Alonso, who won the German Grand Prix. Spain reigns!

Three, we love rivalries. Like Roger vs. Rafa, Lakers vs. Boston (or will be LA vs. Miami next year?), Tiger vs. Phil (we wish!), there’s a new couple: Contador vs. Schleck. The past two years, they finished 1-2. We can’t wait for 2011.

Four, the Tour de Lance is done. Mr. Armstrong punctured a tire on the cobblestones, slipped on the wet roads, and admitted he’s “just not fast enough.” Well, what can you expect from a 38-year-old father of four (baby No. 5 arriving in October). Which brings me back to Lance’s seven TdF wins—and how astonishing that was to accomplish. Imagine, zero mistakes for 21 days… multiplied by seven years… straight!

Finally, with Floyd Landis and Greg LeMond ganging up on their fellow American, let’s hope, at the conclusion of all this, that Lance is telling the truth. For the estimated 28 million cancer patients today, for sports, for the sake of honesty, let’s hope Lance did not inject.

As P-Noy spoke, P-Manny stood out

(Reuters)

CongressManny! If you watched yesterday’s SONA by Pres. Noynoy Aquino, in the midst of the political heavyweights that surrounded the audience glimmered one undisputed heavyweight champion: Rep. Manny Pacquiao.

Didn’t our honorable legislator look good in his barong tagalog? Ever-smiling and sitting up tall while the TV cameras broadcasted his space, didn’t he appear confident amongst the crowd of intellectuals? Yes. For this I bet: Other than P-Noy himself, there was no bigger celebrity yesterday—whom the attendees wanted to snap photos with—than our Pinoy champ.

But, with 110 days left before his Nov. 13 clash with Antonio Margarito, this will be another tremendous challenge for Pacman. Not wanting to disappoint his Sarangani constituents, he also can’t spend little time in the gym. How to juggle this added “Congressman” title is Manny’s latest trial. He has to remember that—beyond his representing the 490,000 constituents of Sarangani—his bigger role is representing the entire 90 million Filipinos… as our hero.

With Rep. Luigi Quisumbing in the foreground (Reuters)

He can’t lose. He must win. Therefore, he must train. Abandoning his Wild Card Gym camp in LA—that, by itself, is a breach of contract. Distractions, distractions. Though we’ve seen him triumph despite the myriad of affairs (TV shows, Krista Ranillo scandals, late-night gamble allegations, every-Sunday basketball games)—the next three months will be another Pacman game.

Train hard, Manny. Yes, you’re the Sarangani representative, but more than that, you’re the Representative of the entire Philippines.

The fall from the rise of LeBron James

Two Sundays ago, I made a mistake. I declared LeBron’s joining forces with Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade as the right move. Now I’m having a change of mind. Sure, LBJ wants to win that NBA ring. Sure, it was legal. But here’s another sure thing: LeBron made millions of enemies.

His blunder wasn’t joining the Miami Heat—again, he’s a free agent and that’s his prerogative. His mistake was his decision to have “The Decision.” If you recall, LeBron announced to the world his Miami transfer not via a no-nonsense, 12-minute press conference. Instead, the self-proclaimed King promoted himself like a God—to the full hilt, holding six NBA teams as hostage and starting a fiery hype that engulfed the sports world.

Really?

On July 8 in the ESPN show “The Decision,” 13 million TV viewers locked-in for 60 minutes to watch his lips say the seven words that will be embedded in NBA history: “I’m taking my talents to South Beach.”

Why was this TV show dubbed a LeBacle? Simple: Knowing that he was going to hurt the 11.5 million residents of Ohio—fans who’ve embraced him as their native son the past seven years; knowing that he was going to disappoint the citizens of New York, Chicago, New Jersey and LA—couldn’t LeBron have focused the attention less on himself? Couldn’t he have done a plain announcement? Been more sympathetic? To his Cleveland family?

Yes, yes, yes. Yes to all of the above. And, I’m sure if you give me LeBron’s number now and I ask him if he can redo how he packaged his decision, he’ll say Yes. I wish I could have given it less hoopla, he’d declare. For, as the saying goes, “Hindsight explains the injury that foresight would have prevented.”

Today, in Fox Sports, ESPN and dozens of other NBA commentaries, they sadly pronounce the same thing: Bad move, LeBron. Sad, isn’t it? From the most revered of athletes comes this worldwide repudiation and scorn. (Can you imagine the jeering and booing he’ll hear when Miami visits Cleveland?)

Commented Michael Jordan: “There’s no way, with hindsight, I would’ve ever called up Larry, called up Magic and said, ‘Hey, look, let’s get together and play on one team.’” Ouch. Does this mean LeBron did not have enough courage to stand up on his own and win? Yes, says MJ.

Charles Barkley added: “Mike and I are in 100 percent agreement on this. If you’re the two-time defending NBA MVP, you don’t leave anywhere. They come to you. That’s ridiculous. I like LeBron. He’s a great player. But I don’t think in the history of sports you can find a two-time defending MVP leaving to go play with other people.” (True. Instead, shouldn’t LeBron have enticed Chris Bosh to move to Cleveland?)

Now. What’s LeBron got to do? Well, simple: Win the championship. Now. This season. Anything short will mean more ridicule and damage to his already-damaged persona.

Not everybody’s a loser in this controversy, though. The big winner is Fil-Am Erik Spoelstra, the Miami Heat head coach. His mother, Elisa Celino, hails from San Pablo, Laguna. “I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve visited the Philippines only when I was three years old,” he said in the Phil. Daily Inquirer. “I’m definitely planning to go again.” Bringing with you the Three Kings?

The jackpot winner of this whole story? Of course, Miami. Quoting an AP story entitled “Heat business takes over on and off the court,” there’s now a dish in Miami called LeBron Burger. Served at the diner OneBurger, “It starts with Kobe beef (a nod to Bryant), with Swiss cheese, an onion ring (think championship ring) and jalapenos (for heat, er, the Heat).”

Hotels in Miami? One room, the “Heat Suite” for $2,500/night, includes a “Ferrari F430 rental, James’ favorite snacks, an iPod with his favorite tunes.” Mandarin Oriental has “Live Like LeBron” weekends—with basketball-shaped cookies.

Spa? There’s “LeBroyal Treatment” with “a massage, manicure, personal training session, jet-ski rental, gift package and a six-pack of beer.” For $149, it’s expensive—and better than lingam!

Igi Maximo pedals to the Max

(Photos at team maX1mo)

“Lance Armstrong is my idol,” said Luis Miguel “Igi” Maximo. “Apart from being a strong cyclist, what amazed me was how he fought cancer and won the Tour de France seven consecutive times!”

Igi Maximo is only 15. But when I asked for an assessment of who, between the cyclists, he picks to win the TDF this Sunday, like a seasoned expert, he replied: “I like Alberto Contador. He has proven to be an all-around cyclist and very strong climber. I enjoy it when he attacks big time on the mountain stages. Andy Schleck is also a favorite—but my bet is Contador. After hearing Schleck’s mechanical problem, he may still have a chance but if he doesn’t pull this off on the mountain stages, he’ll have a hard time in the Time Trial because Contador is better.”

Mature. Well-versed. Sports fanatic. Those are words best to describe this third year high schooler at PAREF-Springdale. Igi has lived all his life in a sports-obsessed home. His dad, Maxi, was Cebu’s 2009 Sportsman of the Year and the former Cebu Football Association (CFA) president who is visible in everything-sports: running the 21K, managing the CESAFI football tournament, biking, updating his sports website, PabolFC.blogspot.com.

Like father, like son. Igi is the only son of Maxi and Sheila (they have two daughters, Ina and Ica). And, like the elder Maximo, the younger one has sports revved to the max: excelling in football as a varsity striker before transforming into the junior cycling champion that he is today.

“I started biking last year when I was invited by my classmates to join an outdoor group called Kaabay Boys Club of Sugbu Study Center,” said Igi. “Aside from biking, the club organizes camping, hiking, group studies and conducts talks on moral values and good character. I didn’t have a bike then, so I just borrowed. Later, I asked my dad to buy me one.”

In 12 or so months, Igi won three races in the prestigious Philippine Premier Cycling League (PPCL)—in Manila, Laguna and Clark. For someone so new to cycling, this is Lance-like. Apart from the PPCL, which runs until December, Igi added, “I also plan to join the local races… but the one I like to join again is the US Junior Cycling events. I had the opportunity to be in the US last summer and, while joining, not only had fun but learned a lot about road racing. I was nervous & excited because I was the only entry from the Phils. The junior cyclists were so good and fast. I want to go back and see if I can now keep up with them. I hope the Fil-Am community who partly sponsored me will invite me again next summer.”

Why this strenuous and dangerous sport? “Cycling teaches me a lot,” he said. “One, how to balance my academics and sports. Two, how to never give up… to bounce back from any loss, fighting stronger the next time. Three, in cycling or life, it’s not always an easy path; you will encounter challenges and it’s up to you how much you want to improve. Your performance will depend on your effort (I learned this from my dad.)”

Despite his youthfulness, Igi has started to compete in the Men’s Open (Elite) category, recently joining the mountain-bike ITT race and placing fourth. When I asked Igi how he’s become a success given his young age, his reply was direct: I simply have the full support of my parents. Enough said!

Maxi with Pacman, John P. and Atty. Jingo Quijano

To which his dad, Maxi, sent a separate email reply: “John, I asked Igi why he answered it that way. He said he just wants to highlight one important aspect – the parents’ support to a young athlete. I find him to be humble kid. He is not the type that trumpets his victories. Even in school, he does not tell his classmates & teachers that he won. He just keeps it to himself. They only find it out when they read it in the papers. This is partly why his fellow students and teachers are at ease with him: undefeated in the Student Council elections (Gr.7-class rep, 1st yr-Treas., 2nd yr-Sec., 3rd yr-VP) and 6-time Springdale Athlete of the Year.”