It’s time to help Filipino sportswriters – MVP

by Smart Speak Bulletin

March 3, 2009

Business leader Manny V. Pangilinan has always believed that Filipino sportswriters play an important role in promoting sports as a tool for shaping the minds of the citizenry and the nation – a belief he concretized with a P1 million donation to set up a foundation for the men and women who cover Philippine sports.

His announcement of the donation, which elicited nods of approval from those attending the annual Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Awards Night last Friday where he was also honored as Sports Patron of the Year, underscores Pangilinan’s commitment to sports including those who report it. “It’s time for us to help our sportswriters because they have always been there to support the Filipino athlete. That’s very important to me,” he told close associates moments before he announced his donation.

His kind gesture apparently inspired boxing icon Manny Pacquiao who also donated P1 million and new Philippine Sports Commission chairman Harry Angping who shelled out P500,000 to add to the foundation’s seed funding.

During the awards night, the chairman of PLDT and Smart Communications also lauded the best in Philippine sports as great athletes who “not only accept the ordeal of competition but also embrace it.”

Pangilinan, who chairs the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP), renewed his commitment and the commitment of the business organizations he heads – particularly SMART – to the two sports Filipinos love to follow.

“I would like to assure all of you that our commitment to amateur boxing is as unconditional as it is to basketball. While we obviously cannot guarantee an Olympic gold, the faith we have in our mission and the confidence we have in our boxers remain steadfast,” he stressed.

Pangilinan reported that ABAP’s concept of establishing regional training centers throughout the country has been “warmly received.” Under the scheme, ABAP’s foreign and local coaches go to the provinces in line with what he described as a “countrywide, grassroots, mass-based developmental program.

Explaining his decision to accept the chairmanship of ABAP which he assumed early this year, Pangilinan said the hard training, diet, discipline and the frustrations due to lack of support, equipment, training facilities and interest in the boxers’ plight has moved PLDT and SMART to accept the challenge. “And to apply our corporate experience in planning, organizing and financing our quest for an Olympic gold in boxing,” he added.

During the ABAP congress in Bacolod last January, Pangilinan announced an attractive incentive package which would award P12 million for every gold medal, P3 million for silver and P1 million for bronze in boxing during the 2012 Olympics.

For basketball, Pangilinan noted that SBP has made significant progress in the last two years. He said the Coaches Commission is “well on its way” in licensing, accrediting and training coaches on a nationwide basis, and the Technical Commission is in the middle of implementing its National Referees Development Program.

Like in boxing, he added, SBP is also in the process of establishing regional training centers and forming youth teams in various age categories while also strengthening the national women’s team.

Stressing the value of sports, he said sports involve fair play, respect for opponents and appreciation of the traditions, practices and values central to a society.

“At its core, sports is ethical and value-based. And competitive sport is, by its very nature, a value activity,” he added.

Opening his speech by outlining personal reasons for his involvement in sports, Pangilinan said it is passion that is rooted in basic values such as excellence, determination and hard work, integrity, honesty and fair play. “These values in turn connect you to a purpose beyond the ordinary,” he stressed. He also said sports offers a “richness of experience all its own,” noting that an athlete has to overcome physical challenges of injury or defeat or the less tangible ones such as an unfriendly crowd or a critical newspaper article.

Imparting words of inspiration to the PSA honorees led by Athlete of the Year awardee Manny Pacquiao, Pangilinan quoted 1964 Olympic swimming gold medalist Donna de Varona who said “the values learned on the playing field – how to set goals, endure, take criticism and risks, become team players, use our beliefs, stay healthy and deal with stress – prepare us for life.”

Pangilinan, who – along with Smart Communications – also supports taekwondo and tennis, said he loves sports simply because it teaches many things in life. “Indeed, sports is a strong metaphor of life,” he concluded.

When asked why he continues to support Philippine sports despite the crunch now threatening the global economy, the long-time sports benefactor simply smiled and said “it’s a necessity.”