It’s a few hours to go before one of the most-awaited events in Cebu sports unfolds… Z vs. V. Will Z “The Dream” Gorres fulfill his dream? Or will Vic “The Raging Bull” Darchinyan ravage over Z like a raging bull? Abangan! Check on Philboxing.com. (Photos of yesterday’s weigh-in by Dong Secuya.)
Her name is Leszl Gitaruelas. She’s 33, married with three children, the eldest aged 15. But she’s not your typical stay-at-home mom. She’s an ultra-athlete. By “ultra,” I mean elite. Unlike you and me and 99.8 percent of the populace, she has a physiological makeup that only God can bestow. In two words, she’s this: A CHAMPION.
Back in 1992—when she was only 18—her sport was arm-wrestling. Yes, no typing mistake there: arm-wrestling. And she didn’t just arm-wrestle boys in school, she grappled them to the ground. At 18, when most girls her age first closed their eyes for that first kiss, Leszl did something else: She was the Philippine Arm-Wrestling Champion. No kidding. At 18! And, when Leszl joined the World Arm-Wrestling Championships in Japan, she placed fourth place.
In the 12 years that Cebu’s “Queen of Running” has lorded over the sport in Cebu, there have been dozens and dozens of newspaper photos and articles that were featured about her. Here are a few…
I know it’s been several days since the 2008 Australian Open concluded but when I saw these pictures, they’re too good not to share…
(Photo by Mark Dadswell/Getty Images)
Yesterday (Jan. 29), the group of men and women whose stories you read about in the newspaper Sports Section met to deliberate on the winners for the upcoming SAC-SMC All-Cebu Sports Awards, an annual gathering where top athletes, coaches, individuals and teams are honored. I don’t have the final listing yet of awardees and will post them very soon. But for now, here are our photos from yesterday’s lunch at Cafe Laguna, courtesy of San Miguel Corp. and one of their top honchos, Girlie Garces.
Seated fom left: Marian Baring (Sun.Star Daily), Rick Gabuya (CDN), Manny Villaruel (The Freeman), Girlie Garces (of San Miguel Corporation); (standing, from left) Marsante Alison (The Freeman), Mike Limpag (Sun.Star Cebu), Raffy Osumo (The Freeman), Jun Migallen (Sun.Star Superbalita), Caecent Noot-Magsumbol (The Freeman), Brian Ochoa (CDN), John Pages, and Nimrod Quinones (The Freeman)
With Freddie Roach
One of the top boxing scribes in the country is also one of the top lawyers in this city. I’m referring to my “neighbor” in Sun.Star Cebu, the man I sit beside often when we watch local boxing fights, and the writer who just “cornered” Z Gorres and penned an excellent interview/article on the fighter we’ll see this Saturday. Read Atty. Jingo Quijano’s excellent piece in Sun.Star Cebu today… it’s aptly-titled “AYE TO Z.”
Last Sunday morning at the Casino Español de Cebu, I chanced upon meeting Michael Aldeguer. I’ve known Michael since high school—we played basketball against each other; he donned the Sacred Heart uniform while I wore the CIS jersey—and, when we talk of sports and boxing and the NBA, he’s one of the most impassioned and enthusiastic of men. Mike and I sat down for a few minutes to talk about—of course—this Saturday night’s blockbuster named “Now Or Never.”
“This fight is generating a lot of excitement,” I told Mike. “Probably even more than the one of Gorres and Montiel. And considering that in that fight (last year at the Cebu City Sports Center), Boom-Boom fought.”
“You think so?” Mike replied. When Mike asked why, I mentioned that the key component in all this hysteria can be summed up in one word: DARCHINYAN. Because while Montiel last year was the WBO super flyweight champion when he fought Z, he wasn’t known. I, for one, had not known of the Mexican until I saw the posters promoting “The Moment of Truth.”
(Photo by Joe Miranda)
Darchinyan? He needs no introduction. We must have read his name and seen his video footages, what, 127 times. The reason? Because of a Filipino-American named Nonito Donaire who knocked him out in the fifth round last July 7—for his first-ever defeat. And more than that, we also know Vic Darchinyan to be “The Raging Bull.” Prior to his Donaire upset, he won all 29 pro fights (with 23 KO’s). So the Cebuanos know that this, quite possibly, will be one of the best-ever fights we’ve seen on home soil.
Z Gorres? “He’s very, very excited,” said Michael. “In fact, when we asked him months back whom he wanted to face, he really asked for Darchinyan. So this, I think, is the perfect match-up.”
(Photo from Philboxing.com)
Where’s the fight? At the Waterfront Lahug. I really enjoy watching fights there. I recall accompanying my father-in-law Jack Mendez there a few times. You’re seated on foam chairs, there’s no chance of rain falling, the room is cold, and the boxing is hot. What more can you ask?
Trust me: This Saturday is a fight you should NEVER miss. And if you still haven’t bought tickets, here’s another tip: but them NOW.
It doesn’t matter if you’ve never swung a Wilson tennis racquet before, I hope you saw the Men’s Final of the Australian Open last Sunday night. The first set? It was all a tussle and grapple of physical will.
Jo-Wilfriend Tsonga, all of 6-foot-2 and built and looking like Muhammad Ali, sparred against the 6-foot-1 1/2 Novak Djokovic. And, just like the way he demolished Rafael Nadal in the semifinals, Tsonga won the first set.
Then he started making errors. Then Djokovic started to play like the world’s no.3 who had just beaten Roger Federer two days earlier. Novak won the second set. Next, the third. And, just when we proclaimed the match was over, Djokovic limped. He looked weary. A trainer was called to massage his legs while Tsonga bounced and was ready to pounce. But in the end, after a fourth set tiebreak, Djokovic collapsed to the ground in victory to claim his first-ever Grand Slam title.
