Kiefer Ravena first Filipino athlete to sign with iconic Jordan brand
"I still can’t believe that I’m part of the Jordan Brand Family," he said in a post on his Instagram......»»
Hidilyn Diaz, women empowerment take center stage in new Under Armour store opening
As Under Armour's elite athlete ambassador, Diaz spearheaded the latest campaign of the brand focused on women empowerment......»»
Dreams are not impossible to achieve – Kiefer
From a high school and collegiate phenom to a national team mainstay, Milo ambassador, PBA superstar and now a world staple as the first Filipino athlete to join the elite Jordan Brand family, Kiefer Ravena has achieved it all......»»
Ravena 1st Pinoy to join Jordan brand
Kiefer Ravena, national star from the Gilas Pilipinas team and Philippine Basketball Association, is the newest athlete, and first Filipino, to join the Jordan Brand’s growing family. .....»»
Kiefer Ravena first Filipino athlete to sign with iconic Jordan brand
"I still can’t believe that I’m part of the Jordan Brand Family," he said in a post on his Instagram......»»
Ravena joins Jordan family
NLEX ace guard Kiefer Ravena has signed with the Jordan Brand, becoming the first Filipino athlete in an elite circle that includes NBA superstars Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics, Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks and the New Orleans Pelicans’ Zion Williamson......»»
Asian MTB champ is new GAC Motor ambassador
Legado Car Sales, the official retailer of GAC Motor in the Philippines, has named elite mountain bike national athlete Ariana Dormitorio as its newest brand ambassador......»»
Team Lakay s Geje Eustaquio open to testing himself in ONE Super Series
Team Lakay flyweight star Geje "Gravity" Eustaquio has reached the mountaintop of the division after having held the ONE Flyweight World Championship from mid-2018 to early-2019. For the 31-year old former world champion, getting his belt back remains a top priority, but he's open to trying his hand at ONE Championship's striking-only platform, the ONE Super Series. Home to some of the world's best strikers, ONE Super Series has been a successful addition to ONE's brand of martial arts action, and it's also giving their athletes a chance to shift from sport to sport. For Eustaquio, who's considered as one of the best strikers in the division, competing in kickboxing or muay thai is a welcome challenge. “It would be a privilege for me to compete in ONE Super Series among legends, but right now, I’m just focused on my MMA career and looking to get back on track," Eustaquio told ONE Championship. "It’s been a rough couple of years, but I still consider myself among the top in my division. My mind is still on the flyweight title, and that’s what I’m working towards." “But yes definitely, I want to test my striking against the best in the world," he continued. In the flyweight division, ONE's best striker is arguably reigning ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang "The Iron Man" Jitmuangnon of Thailand, who's known for his unparalleled toughness inside the circle. "Gravity" has nothing but the utmost respect for Rodtang because of his abilities inside the ring and his personality out of it. “I think Rodtang is a tremendous athlete, and a big inspiration to many. Even though he’s the champion, he never forgets where he came from. You can still find humility in him, and I have so much respect for him,” said Eustaquio. “I think his greatest strength is his durability. His ability to walk through the line of fire, and just goad his opponents into a fight, it’s admirable. At the same time, it’s his biggest weakness. Fighters with that kind of style tend to underestimate things. In this sport, you can never predict what is coming, or how heavy or dangerous a strike could be. We’re only humans, after all, and he’s just a man," Eustaquio continued. Rodtang is scheduled to defend his title against countryman Petchdam Petchyindee Academy when ONE returns to action at ONE: No Surrender this coming July 31st. If Rodtang can remain the champion, it's definitely not outside the realm of possiblity that Eustaquio be tapped as the next challenger. “One day it would be an honor for me to share the ONE Super Series ring with this legend,” Eustaquiao said. “Or maybe, if he wants to shift over to MMA, I can put together a welcome party," he concluded. .....»»
Coach Tab expects Dwight Ramos to make his presence felt all over for Ateneo
Ateneo de Manila University will not have a big chunk of its championship core for UAAP 83. Gone are Isaac Go, Thirdy Ravena, Adrian Wong, and Nieto twins Mike and Matt and the Blue Eagles will head into battle spearheaded by the likes of SJ Belangel, Ange Kouame, and Gian Mamuyac. That doesn't mean, however, that the light on the blue and white will be dimming anytime soon as reinforcement has also come in the form of Filipino-American Dwight Ramos. And even now, head coach Tab Baldwin has no doubt about the splash the 6-foot-5 wing will make come Ateneo's title defense. "I think Dwight has a chance to make a significant impact," he said in the inaugural episode of Coaches Unfiltered. According to the brilliant tactician, Ramos' impact will not necessarily seen by the naked eye as it will be spread out all over the floor. As he put it, "Dwight's the kind of player who has across-the-board impact in a game. He's a very intellectual player. He's not just a great athlete because he also has good skills." He then continued, "He impacts court spacing by how he plays offensively and defensively. He's very, very unselfish. He can play multiple positions." In the end, Coach Tab reiterated that there's a reason why the faithful over at Katipunan is looking forward to the debut of their brand new Blue Eagle. "His impact, I think, is going to be significant, but again, it's not going to be a huge statistical impact as some people might expect or want to see," he said. --- Follow this writer on Twitter, @riegogogo......»»
WHAT IF... Ben Mbala played his last year in La Salle
History lesson: Ben Mbala was one of the most dominant - if not the most dominant - forces the UAAP has ever seen. Winning a championship as well as back-to-back MVPs, Mbala was, hands down, the best player in all of college in his two years suiting up for De La Salle University. Technically, he had one more playing year, but decided against it to take back control of his career. This decision, coming right after the Green Archers got dethroned by archrival Ateneo de Manila University in a thrilling three-game Finals. That would just be the first of three championships in a row for the Blue Eagles who swept the University of the Philippines and the University of Sto. Tomas the following years. Meanwhile, without the Cameroonian powerhouse, the Taft-based team fell short of the playoffs the following years. Now, the green and white is trying to barge back into the playoff picture with a fourth coach in four years. It is far from a certainty that Louie Gonzalez, who replaced Aldin Ayo, would be able to hold off Gian Nazario - and active consultant Jermaine Byrd - and then Derrick Pumaren if he had led La Salle to the Final Four in UAAP 81. What is a certainty, however, is that with Mbala back in the fold, they are locks for the Final Four. And so, what if "Big Ben" played his last year in La Salle? Ateneo would remain the top-seed while Adamson University would fall to three and the University of the Philippines would fall to four. Mbala and company would then stake claim to the second-seed and the twice-to-beat advantage it entails before taking care of business yet again against the Soaring Falcons. In the other bracket, the Blue Eagles end the Cinderella story of the Fighting Maroons who would play in their first Final Four in 21 years, but would still be looking for their first Finals since 1986. With that, the rivalry trilogy would be set in motion - Ateneo-La Salle for all the glory for the third year in a row. And for the 6-foot-8 center, the rubber match would have been theirs. Asked in the inaugural episode of The Prospects Pod if they would have reclaimed the title if he had played his last year, he answered, "Yeah. I think so." Our own thought experiment, however, thinks otherwise and has the Blue Eagles getting the better of the Green Archers once more. The arrival of Rookie of the Year Ange Kouame is a brand new tall task to face for Season MVP Mbala. Of course, the now-three-time MVP still finds a way against the inexperienced Ivorian, but Ateneo's total team effort would still prove to be too much for La Salle. According to Mbala, if he had stayed, Ricci Rivero would have stayed as well and not taken his talents to UP. That means that Brent Paraiso would remain as well. A core of Mbala, Rivero, Paraiso, Andrei Caracut, Aljun Melecio, and Santi Santillan would be really nasty, but that also means Justine Baltazar would not get the room he needs to grow. They would fight with their all, for sure, but would also ultimately succumb to the Blue Eagles' otherworldly - and quite frankly, unfair - depth and balance. In the end, Ateneo still goes on to a three-peat, and counting, while La Salle just falls short for the second straight year. Mbala moves on to showcasing his skills overseas - and moves on to ribbing Kiefer Ravena that it's just a matter of time before the butt heads in the PBA. There would also be no more questions about how Kouame would have fared against the Green Archers' best foreign student-athlete. For his part, however, Mbala said that individual comparisons do not matter in basketball. "People tell me that I were there, it would (have been) a different story, but I don't do comparisons. It's not a one-on-one game, it's five-on-five," he said. He then continued, "It was not I will take the rebound and do everything I want. No, it's not that. It's not about the size, it's about the system." --- Follow this writer on Twitter, @riegogogo......»»
Manila Archbishop: Washing of feet maintains faithful’s connection to Jesus
In his homily at the Manila Cathedral on the evening of Maundy Thursday, Advincula stressed the importance of the washing of the feet, not merely as a hygienic act but as a sign of one's relationship with Jesus......»»
PH media slam Chinese foreign ministry’s claims of manipulating WPS reports
Philippine media groups criticized the Chinese foreign ministry for suggesting that recent reports on Chinese harassment of Filipino vessels in the West Philippine Sea involved video manipulation and sensationalism to portray the Philippines as a victim. The Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (Focap) and National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) expressed offense.....»»
In Papa’s footsteps
The late Lope Sarreal Sr. is the only Filipino who wasn’t a fighter inducted in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York......»»
Creamline still team to beat
Creamline’s dramatic, come-from-behind 26-28, 22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 16-14 win over Cignal Tuesday night at the PhilSports Arena showed that it’s still the superpower in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference.....»»
Jollibee invests $28 million in beverage tech firm
Filipino-owned Asian food conglomerate Jollibee Foods Corp. is investing $28 million for a 10 percent stake in beverage technology company Botrista Inc. to support the growth of its coffee and tea business......»»
Capitol mulls putting ‘integrated south bus’ terminal in Talisay instead of at SRP
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Instead of at the South Road Properties (SRP), the new location of a new south bus terminal in Cebu might be in Talisay City. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia on Wednesday, Mar. 27, said that they had received an unsolicited proposal of developing a brand new, south bus terminal. READ: Mayor Rama.....»»
Roque: Xi, Duterte agreed to keep West Philippines Sea status quo
The Philippines under former president Rodrigo Duterte had a “gentleman’s agreement” with China to keep the status quo in the West Philippine Sea, a former Cabinet official said yesterday, as fresh tensions surround the WPS due to recent incursions by Beijing that targeted a Filipino resupply mission and a research team......»»
The significance of Holy Thursday
In the Christian world, there are three very popular scenes found in many Filipino homes......»»
Eala advances in W75 Croissy-Beaubourg tennis tilt
Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala has gone into the next round of the W75 Croissy-Beaubourg tournament in France after sweeping hometown bet Emeline Dartron, 6-3, 6-4, late Tuesday night (Manila time)......»»
Rest of PVL catching up to perenially dominant Cool Smashers?
Creamline’s dramatic come-from-behind 26-28, 22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 16-14 win over Cignal Tuesday night at the PhilSports Arena showed it remained the team-to-beat in the Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference......»»
K-pop group Unis releases debut mini-album, Superwoman MV
After surviving the reality show "Universe Ticket," the eight-member K-pop group Unis, with Filipino members Gehlee and Elisia and Filipino-Korean Jin Hyeonju, launched its mini-album......»»