John Pages – Page 178 – Cebu Sports Blog by John Pages

R or R? In this City of P, the winner is T

The French Open—also known as “Roland Garros,” in honor of the heroic French aviator who braved the clouds during World War I—is the only tennis Grand Slam sortie played on clay. The U.S. and Australian Opens are on hard-court; Wimbledon is on grass. The difference?Clay is slow. On cement, the ball skids off the floor. On grass, it’s even speedier—the ball ricochets. Clay? The yellow ball bounces up… up…, then it floats… floats…

This makes the French Open special. The rallies prolong. Sweat drenches the sand. White socks turn brown. Muscles ache. Smiles disappear. Cries echo the air. On clay, if you’re flabby, if you haven’t jogged 16 kms. during training, if you’re unwilling to sprint for 4.5 hours, you’re out. Like the dust in the wind. Goodbye.

12th Gullas Cup Tennis Champions

Last May 19 to 23, Cebu held the biggest junior tennis event in the Visayas and Mindanao: The Gullas Tennis Cup. Now on its 12th year, the event attracted 216 entries of boys and girls aged as young as seven years old and as old as 21 years old. Thanks to the tennis-loving tandem of Congressman Eddie and Dodong Gullas, this event has thrived and smashed in Cebu!

My favorite ‘Quotable Quotes’

I love reading quotations. They’re quick, at times funny, and always mind-provoking. Take what Muhammad Ali once said: “I’m so fast I could hit you before God gets the news.”

My favorite? “I have missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions I have been entrusted to take the game-winning shot… and missed. I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why…. I succeed.”

Who said that? (Clue: Read on… he also said No. 17.)

1. “My doctor told me jogging could add years to my life, I told him ‘Yeah, since I began, I already feel 10 years older!’” – golfer Lee Trevino
2. “The man who will whip me will be fast, strong and hasn’t been born yet.” – Muhammad Ali
3. “Golf is the only game where the worst player gets the best of it. He obtains more out of it as regards both exercise and enjoyment, for the good player gets worried over the slightest mistake, whereas the poor player makes too many mistakes to worry over them.” – David Lloyd George
4. “Brazilian football is not only a sport. It’s a kind of stage play, a theatrical movement.” – Muniz Sodre
5. “When I was 40 my doctor advised me that a man in his forties shouldn’t play tennis. I heeded his advice carefully and could hardly wait until I reached 50 to start again.” – Hugo L. Black

Dr. Jovito Lee writes…

Cebu City Vice Mayor Mike Rama with (left to right) Allan Lim, Jovito Lee and Domingo Te

I share with you an e-mail sent by Dr. Jovito Lee:

1. We read your article regarding the (PBA) event last May12, 2007. Our chapter and leadership training organization, Metro Cebu Uptown Jaycees, Inc. and its foundation, the Metro Cebu Uptown Jaycees Foundation, Inc., were responsible for bringing the PBA to Cebu City after a 2 year drought.

We concur with your assessment that we need a new venue (mega or super dome) to be able to host events like this but due to some obvious reasons (no investors), the New or “Hot” Cebu Coliseum is the only venue at the moment we can offer to the public when big event like the PBA comes to Cebu City. We did all what we can do to make the atmosphere comfortable but again we are in a venue beyond our control and we are in the summer months. We apologize to the public for such inconvenience.

Gullas Cup on its 12th Year

The biggest junior tennis event in the Visayas and Mindanao is now on-going: the Gullas Tennis Cup, now serving aces and firing smashes after one dozen years. The two venues are Cebu Country Club and Casino Espanol. The games started last Saturday (May 19) and will run until Wednesday (May 23). Drop by and watch our top juniors!

Run For Sight: A Site for Runners

Dr. Potenciano “Yong” Larrazabal III (center of the photo) has a complete website for Cebuano runners. It shows all the events about to kick off this 2007. It shows pictures, commentary, articles. If you reside in Cebu and you’re into the cheapest available form of exercise–running–then bookmark this site (http://www.runforsight.net) and mark it as one of your favorites.

Head-Penn Tennis: A Smashing Success

For many years, one of the top junior tennis events in Cebu has been the Head-Penn Junior Age-Group Championships. This year was no exception. Held at the Sancase Tennis Club in Mabolo from May 15 to 17, over 153 participants joined from all over the country. I attended the awarding and helped distribute the trophies to the winners. Read the Sun.Star Cebu story (written by Marian Baring) on the results…

Left photo: Boys 18 champion Francis Largo (right) and runner-up Larry Antigua (left) with head coach Fritz Tabura

Right photo: The famous Siso family: Sally Mae (right) and Nino (left) with their mom, Sally

You’re a Badminton Fanatic when…

Gina Juan with Men’s World No. 1 Lin Dan at the Aviva Super Series event in Singapore last May 6

One of the top female badminton club players in Cebu, Gina Juan (who plays regularly at the Casino Espanol de Cebu) sent me something hilarious. Question: Are you crazy about this sport? Like thousands of others are in the Philippines? Read on. This just might be you.,,

• Just a split-second before shaking someone’s hand, you think forehand or backhand grip.
• You form hundreds of shuttlecocks into a Christmas tree. At parties, you compare the calluses of friends.
• You buy a tennis racket to train your wrist strength.
• You buy college text books as weights for wrist training.
• You wish you lived in Malaysia or Indonesia.
• You own more than two rackets.
• You’d rather play than go on a dinner date. You call in sick at work to play.
• Your choice of boyfriend is based on his level of play.

Councilor Jack to the Rescue

“The Big Dome” in Quezon City… the Araneta Coliseum

The other day, May 15, I wrote a column in Sun.Star Cebu entitled, “Cebu Megadome: What We Needed Yesterday.”

Yesterday, I read good news. Sylvan “Jack” Jakosalem, the recently re-elected Councilor of Cebu City and the chairman of the games, amusement and professional sports committee at the City Council, announced very good news: “I guess it is the right time to build one for Cebu City,” he announced. “Actually, we had started to negotiate with the National Government and the deal is on, we will build a sports coliseum. We will call it the Megadome…”

That’s welcome news. Thanks, Jack. This proud city of ours deserves no less. How can we call ourselves to tourists and foreigners “better than Manila” if we can’t even build a sportsdome?

Read the full Sun.Star Cebu article (“A ‘megadome’ for Cebu City: Councilor Jack”) penned yesterday by my colleague Rommel Manlosa.

Butch Bacani: Tennis Pros’ Pro

Coach Butch (right) with Michael Mora and Jana Pages

Last night, I had dinner with “The Coach.” If you’ve been in touch with Philippine tennis the past 30 years, you know him. Davis Cup captain. Mentor to dozens of RP’s finest. US-trained. Harry Hopman-tutored. Articulate. Passionate. Inspiring. There are many words to describe Coach Butch Bacani.

Here’s one more: Pete Sampras fan.

During last night’s dinner at the Cafe Laguna Garden with his assistant coach Michael Mora (a former top pro), my wife Jasmin, and our eight-year-old daughter Jana, I asked Butch: “I have this VCD of Sampras. One of the best matches I’ve ever seen. Can you guess what match it is?”

In a split-second, he replied: “Sampras versus Boris Becker, Germany, World Championships.”

I grinned from ear-to-ear. Couldn’t believe it. How did he get it? That quickly? In the split of a split-second? Well, because he’s breathed the tennis air for three decades now, “The Coach” knows the game. He knows the players. And he knows who’s the best ever. “Pete Sampras,” he tells me, “at his prime, will beat Roger Federer at his prime. Nobody has the serve, first or second serve. Nobody volleys as good. In grass and in fast hard-courts, Pete will beat Roger.” I didn’t argue. With a guru as knowledgeable as Butch Bacani, you perform one act: Nod your head.

In case you didn’t know, Butch Bacani is in Cebu for one month to teach tennis. Beginners. Adults. Advanced. Children. Parents. Grandparents. All interested, regardless of shape, age or color, are welcome to join the Monday-Wednesday-Friday sessions at the Cebu Country Club. Sessions end June 1. (Call Ging-Ging at 4161122 for more info.) All you need is your tennis racket, a pair of shorts and Tshirt and shoes… that’s it. Sponsored by SMART, this is–simply amazing–for free!