STAR shines brightly (Part 3)

This is the third and last instalment of our list of the 30 milestones in Philippine sports history over the last 30 years in celebration of The Philippine Sta r’s 30th anniversary.

• The torch of leadership is passed in Philippine athletics with former PSC chairman Philip Juico taking over from Go Teng Kok as PATAFA president. Since the 1996 Olympics, the Philippines has sent only two representatives in athletics. Roy Vence and Elma Muros were in Atlanta in 1996, Eduardo Buenvista and Lerma Balauitan in Sydney in 2000 and in Athens in 2004, Henry Dagmit and Marestella Torres in Beijing in 2008 and Rene Herrera and Torres in London in 2012. In Rio this year, athletics will be represented by Mary Joy Tabal in marathon, Torres in long jump and Eric Cray in the 400- meter hurdles. At the Southeast Asian ( SEA) Games last year, the Philippines collected five gold medals from athletics with Cray winning two and Christopher Ulboc, Kayla Richardson and Caleb Stuart bag- ging one apiece. The last Philippine gold medal in the Asian Games from athletics came from Lydia De Vega in the 100-meter run in 1986 so that drought will be addressed in the next Asiad.

• The Philippines becomes the center of the Ironman 70.3 triathlon in Asia. Alaska CEO and fitness enthusiast Wilfred Uytengsu has been the prime mover of the campaign to make the country an Ironman hub in Asia and Pacific. Since 2009, Uytengsu’s Sunrise Events has staged the Ironman 70.3 here with an exponential rise in participation year after year. The popularity of the annual triathlon has spawned similar endurance competitions, not only providing a stage for the country to showcase its ability to host international events but also raising the level of consciousness in physical fitness across generations. This year will mark the first-ever Ironman 70.3 Asia Pacific triathlon in the country, a tribute to the tireless efforts of Uytengsu in bringing the sport in the country to a higher level.

• Filipino golfers make their mark globally. More and more Filipinos are excelling in international circuits. Miguel Tabuena, 21, will compete in Rio and two others were awarded tickets but Angelo Que and Dottie Ardina backed out. The fact that three parbusters from the Philippines could’ve played in Rio in golf’s comeback to the Olympics after a 112- year absence was a recognition of how the sport has progressed in the country. Frankie Miñoza, 56, remains a championship contender wherever he plays and the Asian Tour is packed with talent like Artemio Murakami, Tony Lascuña and Juvic Pagunsan. In the ladies circuit, Mia Piccio, Cyna Rodriguez and Jennifer Rosales are among the campaigners making waves overseas.

• The Philippines wins the Jones Cup in 1998 and 2012. Every year, Taiwan hosts the Jones Cup that gathers teams from all over the world with the Philippines always an attraction. Coach Ron Jacobs brought Northern Cement to the Jones Cup title in 1981 and San Miguel Corp. to the crown in 1985. Then, coach Tim Cone took the Centennial squad to the throne in 1998. Coach Chot Reyes became the first Filipino to win the championship with Gilas in 2012. This year, coach Bo Perasol is in line to join Reyes as the only Filipino mentors to capture the title with Mighty Sports on the way to the top.