Crimson Crux

I’m running late with this question, but does anyone know where to buy 2005 SEA Games merchandise? I’ve seen a scant number of t-shirts here and there, but not a single shop which sells them. The closest I’ve found is a little stall in SM Megamall (I think it was called Reynaldo’s) which boasts of SEA Games figurines, keychains, and pen/memo holders. But no shirts! (I’ve given up the search for Gilas stuffed toys — maybe they’re exclusive for the winning athletes only.)

If you still want memorabilia of the Games, do rush to SM Megamall’s ground floor, near the iceskating rink. I got my Gilas figurine slash pen/memo holder for only Php 200 — the original price was Php 400. Yes, that’s 50% off. There are available sizes other than the one in the picture.

As a side note, the original mascot for the 2005 SEA Games was a tarsier. Whoa. I’m just glad they changed it to the monkey-eating eagle, Gilas. That bird is simply the best symbol for the victorious Filipino athletes; I can’t imagine the tarsier being the same.

Postscript. The 2005 ASEAN Para Games ended last Tuesday. Host Philippines garnered 19 gold medals, good for sixth place. This has been labeled by sportswriters as a “surprising” performance, as we won just 2 gold medals two years ago in Vietnam. Again, great job, athletes!

23rd SEA Games Final Medal Tally

I was glued to the TV last night, as host nation and overall champion Philippines bade farewell to its Southeast Asian neighbors in the SEA Games‘ closing ceremony.

The event’s festiveness and grandeur were several notches down compared with the opening ceremony — the final parade of athletes felt lacking (too rushed, no formal announcement that the Philippines bagged the championship), and the performance of Maestro Ryan Cayabyab and the San Miguel Philharmonic Choir didn’t match its opening rites level (but that’s setting the bar too high, as they were still damn good). Hell, even the PA butted into President GMA’s formal closing of the Games! (You can, of course, find that entertaining.)

However, the event did serve its purpose, namely to ease the competitive tensions built up during the course of the biennial meet. The fireworks display was one of the best I’ve seen for the whole year, lasting for more than 20 minutes. And of course, the frenzied motions of the Ati-Atihan dancers spiced up the night.

As Channel News Asia said, “The closing ceremony was filled with an explosion of music, dance and colours only the Filipinos can provide.” That’s quite a compliment, don’t you think?

Congratulations to the Philippine athletes, organizers, and volunteers for staging a successful SEAG. They didn’t have the most abundant of resources and facilities at their disposal, but they still came through in the end. After years in the muck, the Philippines re-establishes itself as a sporting power in Southeast Asia, garnering over 25% (113) of all the gold medals at stake. (Wushu was the biggest goldmine, where we got 11 gold medals.)

Let’s hope this brief, brilliant moment inspires us to reach even greater heights. The 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar fast approaches, and even the next SEAG meet (2007) at Bangkok, Thailand. And of course, the big one — the 2008 Beijing Olympics.As our battlecry goes — Team Pilipinas, One Big Fight!

Postscript. The Philippines will also be paying host to the 2005 ASEAN Para Games, to be held on December 14-20 at Manila.

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!

The Philippines has won the overall championship of the 2005 SEA Games, bagging 114 gold medals after the second-to-the-last day of competitions! We only needed 106 gold medals to bag the championship, and we’ve exceeded that by 8 — a shining testament to the skill and excellence of our athletes.Sunday, December 4 was touted as the “D-Day” of the Games, as 100 gold medals were at stake. Prior to Sunday, the Philippines had 91 gold medals in the bag, and — according to experts — were 15 shy of the overall championship. Now, as we move on to the final day of competitions, Team Philippines is assured of its first SEAG championship, by virtue of its insurmountable lead. (Second running Thailand has 86 gold medals, and only around eight gold medals are up for grabs tomorrow.)

The Games’ Closing Ceremonies will begin at 5:30 PM, at the Manila’s Quirino Grandstand. Without doubt, the host nation will be throwing a big party to celebrate the Games’ spirit of “One Heritage, One Southeast Asia”, as well as the Philippines’ epic triumph.

In these times of crisis and uncertainty, our athletes have given us hope and pride in the nation and our race. These men and women have given their blood, sweat, and tears for this historic triumph. Sa mga atletang Pinoy ng 2005 SEA Games — Maraming maraming salamat, mabuhay kayo!

Postscript. As a side note, the Thai Prime Minister’s insinuations of cheating by the hosts should now be laid to rest, seeing that even Filipino athletes were seemingly bamboozled of their gold medals in Saturday’s boxing finals. The fans in attendance were so infuriated by the goings-on that they began throwing coins and plastic bottles onto the ring. Undoubtedly, each country had and has its own protests, but the Thai PM’s childish remarks are way off the courtesy chart. Anyway, all’s well that ends well.

The Southeast Asian Games 2005 formally opened last night at the Quirino Granstand, Manila. Like advertised, the event was a low-budget affair, but it didn’t reflect on the impressive show put on by the host country, the Philippines. It was the perfect union of austerity with pomp and pageantry. A festive mood was in the air all throughout the event, punctuated by the stirring performance of Maestro Ryan Cayabyab and the San Miguel Philharmonic Orchestra. (You can just feel the music beating with your heart.)

I loved how the event was held — from the stage set-up to the climactic torch-lighting to the presence of Ati-Atihan dancers to Rivermaya’s once-in-a-lifetime co-performance with the Orchestra. The fireworks could’ve been better, but who cares when you’ve got the beautiful backdrop of Manila Bay?The SEA Games, a biennial meet which started in 1959 (as the SEA Peninsular Games), will run from November 27 to December 5. The host country is aiming for the overall championship, something never before achieved (closest was the 91-gold medal finish back at the 1991 Manila SEA Games, second to Indonesia’s 92).

By the looks of it, the Philippines is off to a good start, already bagging 23 gold medals after Day 2 of hostilities, rather, competition. For the latest medal tally and updates, do visit the Games’ official website. Trace College, the Games’ official sponsor, has done well with the site, though some of the links are broken. Websites for the Cebu and Bacolod areas of the Games are definitely also worth visiting.

As for me, the Games fever has hit me (and hit me hard). I’ve been glued to the idiot box since last night’s opening, forgetting the schoolwork just to witness the Filipinos’ inspiring fight for the championship. Let’s all hope and pray for an early Christmas gift for the nation, shall we?

Go for gold, Team Philippines! Mabuhay ang atletang Pilipino!

Two words: Michael Jordan.

In this excerpt from GAIN’s interview with Thomas Hardy, VP and Creative Director for NBA Entertainment, the reason for the disappearance of those thigh-hugging short shorts of the past is none other than His Airness himself.

“The long pants came from Michael Jordan, which is a great story. Jordan would get tired because he played so many minutes when he was with the Bulls in the mid-‘80s, so by the third quarter he would be exhausted. He would be doing a lot of this leaning over and catching his breath. Eventually he was starting to grab his pants, to hold onto them because he was exhausted. As time when on, you could see that by the end of the game his pants were long because he had just stretched them. He finally asked Champion, the uniform manufacturer, for more length in his shorts, so that he could hang onto his shorts. The next thing you know, the kids see the longer shorts and everybody’s wearing longer shorts. He created a fashion without even knowing it.”

For an NBA addict and MJ fan, this is an incredible story, indeed. For the rest of the in-depth interview, visit this page. You won’t regret it.