CHOOKS-TO-GO 3X3 GODFATHER: PARIS OLYMPICS ‘MAIN OBJECTIVE’
BEYOND the glitz and glamor of the Chooks-to-Go Cebu Masters 2022 3x3 that is set to kick off on Oct. 1 at SM Seaside City Cebu, Chooks-to-Go and Bounty Agro Ventures president Ronald Mascariñas said the ultimate goal is to put Filipinos on the 3x3 court come the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.
Mascariñas—the godfather of the Chooks to Go 3x3 program that has pushed 3x3 basketball to the fore and brought immense pride to the country, thanks to the performances of both the Cebu and Manila Chooks teams in tournaments both here and abroad—said its eyes remain firmly on the prize of earning enough points to compete in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT).
“This is one step of improving our chances of qualifying for the Olympics. That’s our main objective in this activity, to bring Filipinos to play in the Paris Olympics in the name of basketball,” said Mascariñas.
The country is currently ranked #21 in the FIBA rankings of men’s 3x3 basketball. Only the top 24 teams in the world can compete in the OQT.
On Saturday, the Cebu Chooks led by the country’s top 3x3 player, Macmac Tallo, along with Zach Huang, Mike Harry and Brandon Ramirez, and Manila Chooks, which has Dave Ando, Henry Iloka, Dennis Santos and playing coach Chico Lanete, will tangle with foreign teams from Europe, Japan and Mongolia.
“We’re very excited. It’s my first time to play as a pro player here in Cebu,” said Tallo, a former two-time Most Valuable Player award winner in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. while playing for Southwestern University.
The Philippine teams have been training in Cebu since last week.
“It’s been hell the past week. We’ve done everything we could. We all threw up due to the intensity of our training sessions,” shared Tallo of their stay here.
Huang, who starred for Ateneo de Cebu in high school before playing for the University of Santo Tomas, is also raring to get back in action after he missed the recent 3x3 tournament Chooks-to-Go organized in Soledad a couple of weeks ago.
“I’m making sure I get my rhythm back, and I’m hoping that all the hard work I put in comes out on Saturday,” said the energetic forward. /