CSA – Bulacan

Where is the best tennis facility in our 7,107 islands? If you answered Cebu (no way!), Rizal Memorial in Manila (not anymore), Subic (yes, but once upon a long time) or PCA in Manila (no), you guessed it all wrong.

The answer? Bulacan. Yes, the province in Central Luzon that’s a couple of hours travel from Metro Manila.

The Colegio San Agustin (CSA) – Bulacan, the sprawling 20-hectare school that was built just three years ago, houses the country’s best tennis courts.

The total budget — based on what I heard — was P1 billion. This amount includes a mix of world-class sports facilities. There’s an indoor basketball gymnasium that seats at least 3,000. An Olympic size swimming pool. There’s a standard football rectangle and track oval. Plus several other top-notch sports facilities.

All are housed in a gigantic structure that looks like a spaceship (or a giant mall) from afar. And, at the topmost floor of the multi-level building are 11 tennis courts. Five courts on each side complete with bleachers and, at the far end, a center court that’s surrounded by its own seats. The 11 courts are all indoor and hard-court and they carry specs that’s similar to international standards.

Last weekend, my wife Jasmin and I were in Bulacan. For the first time in the history of the UAAP (now on its 81st year), the tennis matches are being played in CSA-Bulacan. In years past, the games were held at the Rizal Memorial Stadium, right beside La Salle and several universities.

Last year, when the players and school officials first heard of the move to transfer the games to Bulacan, complaints reverberated. That’s too far away.. a two-hour-plus drive! they hollered.

But as the games started and the 10 simultaneous matches were played (instead of the six in Rizal) and the indoor roof shaded the already-tan-skinned players, the gripes turned to praises. (Our daughter Jana represents Ateneo and they’re carrying a 2-1 win-loss record.)

The CSA-Bulacan indoor tennis stadium opened only last year. And, as evidence of that, many of the sturdy plastic chairs in the bleachers were still covered with plastic. The whole school is huge. Since they opened the campus in 2015, there are a few students thus far.. only 110 students in the elementary and high school levels. But the long-term goal is to have a full-scale university that will include college courses. The campus houses a building with dormitory rooms and a sizable chapel that seats hundreds.

From what I heard, the property (located in the city of San Jose del Monte) was donated by the Araneta family to CSA and the school raised the funds for the multi-billion project. It is situated beside the Ayala Land Inc. 98-hectare project called Altaraza.

Build it and they’ll come. That’s the overriding message that strikes me when I think about the humongous sports school project. Even if it’s located far from Metro Manila, they built it. And my bet is that, in the long-term, with the growth spreading outside the metropolis and better transportation systems are in place, this CSA-Bulacan sporting heaven will thrive.

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Categorized as Tennis

40 is the new 20

Manny Pacquiao is 40 years old. Roger Federer turns 38 this August. LeBron James missed 17 games for the first time in his 15-year career — a sign of his aging 34-year-old body. Tiger Woods is 43. He’s improving and my hunch is that he’s poised to win a major this 2019. One more example of the old-but-still-the-best athlete?

Tom Brady. It’s Super Bowl LIII tomorrow (Phil. time) in Atlanta, Georgia and the protagonists are the Los Angeles Rams and the New England Patriots. The leader of the Pats is, as we all know, their quarterback. A five-time Super Bowl champ, he is the Michael Jordan of the National Football League.

Tom Brady is 41 years old. For a sport that’s one of this planet’s most physical, Tom Brady’s endurance is phenomenal. The NFL is rough and ruthless. Imagine a 320-lb. linebacker sprinting 21-kph to smash an easy target? Tom Brady has faced that kind of assault since he started in 2000. And despite being 41, the 6-foot-4, 225 lb. Brady is still American football’s unparalled top dog.

Among us, the mortals and ordinary exercisers, the same pattern has emerged. If you survey the ages of those doing the Ironman 70.3 race, the average age isn’t 21 or 29. You see plenty of 40- and 50-year-olds. In the grueling 42K race called the 2019 Cebu Marathon, the 31 to 40 age bracket was a high 34 percent of all participants. For the 41 to 50 years old, the figure was 23 percent. In total, the ones aged 31 to 50 comprised 57 percent of all CCM runners.

Why is it possible for “old” athletes to excel?

First, the elite athletes are able to pace themselves better. Take the case of Roger Federer. Instead of playing every single ATP event, he chooses a handful of the most important and only joins those. He even skips the strenuous clay-court season (including the French Open) to rest his body for Wimbledon’s soft grass or the hard court of the US Open.

Two, better physical training. Given all the advances in physical therapy and conditioning, top athletes today are less likely to get injured. Or, if they do, the recovery is quicker. (Not the case, though, for LeBron or Andy Murray.)

Three, there are some people who are just one-in-a-billion. Take Pacquiao. At 40, he’s supposed to be long retired, having fought in 70 pro fights. (As comparison, Oscar de la Hoya retired after 45 fights.) But Pacquiao is still lightning-quick, lethal, high energy, and pocketing millions of dollars.

Four, attitude. Consider the remarkable story of Olga Kotelko. The Canadian began her athletics career at the age of … 77! She then amassed 30 world records and lived until the age of 95 (she passed away in 2014). We ought to memorize the lesson that Olga leaves all of us. She said:

“I think your age is just a number. It’s not your birthday, it’s how you age which makes the difference. It’s your attitude to all the things that happen in your life that plays the biggest part.”

Novak and Rafa

They’re No.1 and No. 2. One is Serbian and the other is Spaniard. One swats that forehand as a right-hander while the other is a muscular lefty. The two have met 52 times: Novak Djokovic with 27 wins vs. 25 from Rafael Nadal.

It’s the Australian Open final today at 4:30 p.m. (Phil. time).

Choosing one over the other is hard. In major finals, it’s Nadal with a 4-3 edge. But when you examine their outdoor hardcourt battles, Djokovic has a commanding 14-5 lead.

In Melbourne the past two weeks, the top seeds have been invincible. Rafa hasn’t lost a set while Novak steamrolled past Lucas Pouille in the semis. Said the Frenchman: “Novak is playing like really, really fast, really low. He’s close to the baseline. Always he has good placement in any situation. Even in defense, he’s going to put the ball really deep maybe 10, 20 centimeters from the baseline.”

Novak and Rafa are at the peak of their games and both are raring to fight for tennis’ heavyweight championship.

My pick? Unlike Dr. Rhoel Dejaño who idolizes Djokovic, I’m a Nadal fan. And with his improved serve and forehand, I hope the Mallorcan-native will win his 18th major. Not having played in a tournament since his US Open injury last September, he has resurfaced as a hungry Spanish bullfighter.

Stefanos Tsitsipas said of Nadal: “He has this, I don’t know, talent that no other player has. His game style has something that it kind of makes the other half of your brain work more than it usually does. I’m trying to understand, but I cannot find an explanation.”

I hope Rafa wins. But that’s far from certain. If we look at the odds, they favor his nemesis, who’s a -135 favorite (bet $135 to win $100).

But while the choice of winner (prize money: $2.9 million) is no guarantee, what’s guaranteed is a combat; a baseline warfare loaded with two-handed backhand bombs, delicate drop shots, volleys, slice shots, screams, fist pumps. 

The only time the two met in the Oz Open final was seven years ago. It lasted 5 hours and 53 minutes with Novak winning 7-5 in the fifth set. At Wimbledon last July, Novak won 10-8 in the fifth (five hours and 15 minutes).

Tonight, are we expecting another five-hour, five-set marathon? Maybe. It will be a Gladiator-like bloodbath with the Head and Babolat rackets as swords; an Ironman contest between a Lacoste-wearing 31-year-old vs. Nike’s 32-year-old star. It will be about longevity. It will be about dominance. Because while the likes of Tsitsipas, Zverev, Thiem and Khachanov want to triumph in the majors, they’re not welcome yet.

Including Roger Federer’s 20 majors and Nadal’s 17 and Djokovic’s 14, the Big Three have won 51 of the last 62 Grand Slam trophies since 2003. The rest of the world has won only 11 in the past 15 years. This is more than dominance. It’s a near-monopoly and dictatorship by Roger-Rafa-Novak. Today will be 52 of 62 major wins (with an 84% win ratio) for the Big 3.

Rafa in four sets. Vamos!

 

42.195

As you’re reading this, the Cebu Marathon is underway. Starting at 3 a.m., over 1,300 runners will start their long trek from the Cebu Business Park and run a crazy long distance with the aim of being called this: Marathoner.

The marathon is an enigma. It has transformed people’s lives. It has caused knee, foot and back injuries to almost every participant. It’s a dream. It’s a target in one’s “bucket list.”

42.195 is the exact number of kilometers for the marathon. (If you hear someone saying, “I’ll run a 5K marathon,” that’s incorrect.)

Its history dates back to 490 BC in the Battle of Marathon when, according to legend, a Greek soldier named Pheidippides ran to Athens to report the defeat of the Persians. Fast forward to 1896, when the Olympic Games were first held in Athens, the marathon was in the original roster of events.

Today, an estimated 800 marathon events are organized worldwide. This morning, it’s our very own Cebu City that’s hosting the 42K race. (There are also two other distances offered, the 21K and 5K, but the premier event is the 42K.)

What makes our Cebu race special is the Sinulog. It’s timed perfectly a week before the grand parade; thus, the drum beaters, banners and dancers all contributing to a festive, Pit Senyor occasion.

The Hydration Stations, over a dozen of them scattered throughout the route, are stops not only for drinking water or Pocari Sweat but also to get rejuvenated. Entertainment is a must among the water stops — giving a much-needed boost to the wearied runners.

If you’re a participant today, congratulations. It doesn’t matter if you’re a sub-3 runner (like our Olympian Mary Joy Tabal) or it will take you the full 7 hours to complete the journey. What matters is that you joined and finished.

If you’re a friend or relative of a participant, applaud your marathon finisher. Commend him or her for all the months of waking up at 3 a.m. to run; for the discipline and determination. (In the U.S., it’s estimated that only 0.5 percent of the population has finished a marathon. This number will be much, much less in the Philippines.)

If you’re a regular Cebu resident like majority of the SunStar readers, why not “join” by going out early today (the event will conclude at 10 a.m) and cheering on the participants. Finally, if you’re driving and will encounter heavy traffic, be patient. Think less of your inconvenience (sitting down, possibly in an aircon car) and think more of the sacrifices and sweat endured by the marathoners on the road.

Khabib Nurmagomedov


(Photo: Getty Images)

Prior to his fight against Conor McGregor two weeks ago, I had never heard of the 30-year-old Russian.

Now, I’m a huge, huge fan. What he did seconds after he forced McGregor to tap and quit — climbing the Octagon and inciting a near-rumble — was absolutely bad. It was bad for UFC, bad for mixed-martial arts, and bad for himself.

But remove that post-fight brouhaha and you’ve got a wrestling and ground-and-pound champion our planet Earth has never seen.

Conor anticipated the plan of the 5-foot-10 Khabib. It was to fight horizontally, not vertically. Khabib’s goal was to trip him so Conor falls. But despite trying to avoid that scenario, Conor fell prey. The grappling prowess of Nurmagomedov is incredible.

Khabib’s grappling ability started at a very young age. Did you see him wrestle with a real-life bear when he was nine years old? You have to watch that YouTube clip. His father and coach, Abdulmanap, explains that crazy act that happened in 1997 in Dagestan, Russia.

“Firstly, a child always wants his father to see what his son is capable of,” his dad said. “It is a pity that there was nothing more interesting when he was younger. In the end, this was a test of character more than exercise.”

All his life, Khabib — who’s a devout Muslim and is happily married with two kids — trained to be a fighter. And that’s why he sports a 27-win, no-loss record. (His number of wins could have been more had he not succumbed to knee and rib injuries from 2014 to 2016.)

What’s next? It depends on the sure penalty and suspension that the Las Vegas authorities and the UFC will announce. The hearing is set this Wednesday, Oct. 24.

On the reported Floyd Mayweather, Jr. boxing gig, this is crazy. The Floyd-Khabib fight will net each person tens of millions. But no way that Khabib can win. His strength lies when he lies on the floor — not while punching.

“Teammate or no teammate, he’s getting beat up by Floyd Mayweather,” said his friend Daniel Cormier. “And he’s too tough to quit, so he’ll just get beat up for 12 rounds, and getting beat up for 12 rounds is not good.”

My guess is that he’ll fight the 5-foot-11 California resident next. 

“As a fight fan, you’ve got to go with Tony (Ferguson),” said UFC’s Dana White. “Tony had the belt, tweaked his knee, got stripped, this fight happens — Tony never lost the (interim) belt in a fight. Neither did Conor, but Conor got the opportunity to actually fight (Nurmagomedov). I think Tony deserves the next shot.”

Ferguson deserves a shot but he’s got no shot at beating Khabib. Which brings us to a rematch later next year with Conor, The Notorious. And if their UFC 229 encounter two weeks ago netted over 2.4 million PPV buys, this Part 2 will exceed 4 million.

The winner? Both. From a marketing and loud-mouth viewpoint, it’s the Irishman. But inside that 8-sided cage, it’s hard to grapple with “The Eagle” losing.

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Categorized as UFC

Asian Games

Like the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup, the Asian Games are held every 48 months. This sporting spectacle is significant. Of the planet’s 7 continents, Asia is the largest with 4.5 billion people covering 60 percent of the world’s 7.5 billion people.

The cities of Jakarta and Palembeng in Indonesia are co-hosting the 16-day meet that started with the Opening Ceremony last night and concluding on Sept. 2. A total of 45 nations representing 11,000 athletes are participating. Indonesia was not supposed to host; but in 2014, Vietnam backed out because of financial concerns and Indonesia stepped in.

The Asian Games — also referred to as the “Asiad” —  started in 1951 in New Delhi, India. Guess who hosted the 2nd Asian Games? Our very own Manila. Back in 1954 when Ramon Magsaysay was president, we hosted a small contingent of 970 athletes (from 19 countries) and our Philippines ended up 2nd place overall. The main venue in that Asiad 64 years ago remains our main venue today (this shows how much we have NOT progressed): Rizal Memorial, built in 1934. We have not hosted another Asiad since 1954.

For Team Philippines, we are sending a delegation of 281 athletes representing 31 sports in Indonesia. A total of 63 officials will be attending. Our flag bearer? You’ve heard the news: it’s Jordan Clarkson, the 6-foot-4 former teammate of LeBron James whose mom Annette Davis hails from Angeles, Pampanga.

Gilas Pilipinas is, in our basketball-crazy nation, the team to follow. It was a controversial “yes,” “no,” and finally “yes” decision to allow the team to participate. I’m glad Gilas joined. They humiliated Kazakhstan in the first game and, with Clarkson as leader, will play China this Tuesday at 5 p.m.

Sports 5, the media outfit of Manny Pangilinan-owned TV5 and ESPN, is broadcasting most of the Asian Games action through the TV channel and via their live-streaming YouTube channel. (Watching sports on YouTube has become an excellent option. You can watch anytime and there are plenty of shortened versions.)

Mary Joy Tabal, the pride and joy of Cebu, will be joining the 42K road race. The women’s marathon is scheduled seven days from today (August 26) while the Men’s Marathon will be the day before.

As a whole, Team Philippines is (unfortunately) not expected to perform well. Four years ago in Incheon, South Korea, we produced one of our worst-ever showings: only Daniel Caluag won gold (in BMX cycling). We ended up winning 15 medals (one gold, three silver, and 11 bronze) and hope to improve on this performance.

What’s interesting with this Asiad is the inclusion of eSports or electronic sports. Although it’s now a demonstration event, it will be a medal sport in 2022 in Hangzhou, China. Games like “StarCarft II,” “Arena of Valor” and four other video game titles will be played by 18 competing nations. What puzzles me — as an internet-savvy nation — is the exclusion of the Philippines in eSports at the Asiad.

 

Biking the Ironman

For the sixth time in seven years, I joined last weekend’s Ironman 70.3 race. I replaced Dr. Sander Ugalino as the cyclist to join famed triathlete Abet Biagan (our swimmer) and Dr. Mai Ugalino (runner).

While the 1.9-km. swim off the shores of Shangri-La Resort and the 21K run inside Punta Engaño have remained unchanged, the major question mark was the 90 km. bike route. Having used the SRP for the past six years, how was this route going to fare? Days after Sunrise Events’ top honcho Princess Galura made the announcement last month, murmurs of criticisms surfaced: Six bridge climbs? Three repetitive loops? Narrow roads in Mactan?

Having pedaled for 90K last Sunday, what’s my assessment? I loved it.

First, it was new. If you keep on traversing the same route (like the SRP portion), you know what to expect. Last Sunday, the thousands who biked were treated to a new journey. It wasn’t boring. It wasn’t endless kilometers of straight asphalted SRP roads towards Talisay. You slowed for turns, climbed, sprinted under shaded trees, overheard airplanes flying at the runway. It was fun.

Second, more people on the streets. I know that this is both good and bad. More spectators mean more chances of accidents. And I saw dogs crossing the road on multiple occasions. Once, somewhere near J Park Resort, about 200 meters ahead of me a biker crashed hard as a dog crossed. But generally, the more the cheerers, the more exciting and thrilling. And we got thousands upon thousands lining the streets of Lapu-Lapu City last Sunday. (On the what-to-improve portion: I’m sure better crowd control will be enforced next year to lessen the chances for spectator-related accidents.)

Three, less headwind. Sure, there’s still the strong force of that unseen gust that’s pushing you to go slow. But unlike the open air of the SRP when the sidewinds and headwinds can be brutal, the new route had smaller portions scattered around its 30-km. loop.  (Seven days ago, the participants were also blessed with the best weather of the past seven years: the day was cloudy with no strong rain.)

The old Mactan Bridge wasn’t as daunting as the Marcelo Fernan Bridge. It’s shorter and faster to climb. Yes, it’s a total of six climbs up the bridge but it added to the drama and design of the race.

Also, although this is unrelated to the bike route and is applicable only to those joining the relay, an improvement this year: the transition area had plenty of tents and chairs were available. (In previous years, we had to “pungko-pungko” on the rocks while Piolo Pascual had his cushioned seat and cordon of bodyguards.) Thanks to Jonel, Chipi and Andre Borromeo and their Motor Ace group, there was plenty of drinks and bananas and Leona cakes (courtesy of Jane-Jane Ong).

Would I recommend the continuance of this bike route for 2019? Absolutely. I’ve already heard from friends who did not join last weekend — and upon hearing of the positive feedback — wanting to join next year.

As Oscar Wilde once said, “What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise.”

 

 

With Dr. Ronnie Medalle and Jourdan Polotan

 

With the BCBP brothers