San Miguel Corporation President Ramon S. Ang believes the country is poised to win more gold medals in the upcoming Paris Olympics as he pays tribute to all Filipino athletes, especially those honored during the recent Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Awards.
Ang received his second PSA Executive of the Year award, sharing it with Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC) Chairman and President Manny V. Pangilinan, whose partnership paved the way for the Asiad basketball gold.
He mentioned that the upcoming Olympiad will mark the 100th year of the Philippines’ participation, aiming to replicate the success of gold-winning weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz in the Tokyo Games.
“Everything is possible when all the country’s stakeholders work together. It was just three years ago when Hidilyn Diaz shone in Tokyo for our first gold in the Olympics. And just last year, we grabbed the Asian Games gold in basketball which eluded us for 60 years. So I think another breakthrough is possible,” Ang said.
“The gold medal was the result of the hard work and effort of not just the players and coaching staff but, most especially, MVP himself. The Gilas Pilipinas program is really his brainchild, and without his vision, commitment, and patriotism to see the program through all these years, we probably would not have a champion Gilas team,” he continued.
“We are proud to have been given the opportunity to be part of it, and we thank MVP for lifting Philippine basketball to greater heights.”
At the invitation of Pangilinan, Ang supported the country’s successful co-hosting of the FIBA Basketball World Cup when the Philippine team shared the spotlight with the world’s best basketball teams.
“I thank the PSA for the honor and dedicate it to the Gilas Pilipinas team who worked so hard to bring home the gold medal in the face of tough odds,” said Ang, who was first conferred with the PSA Executive of the Year Award in 2017.
He added, “I hope the amazing feat of the Philippine basketball team will also inspire our athletes to go for more gold medals in Paris.”
Olympian and pole vaulter EJ Obiena led those honored during the annual awards conducted by the country’s oldest sportswriting organization.
Also honored were the Philippine Women’s Football team Filipinas, Asian Games gold medalists Meggie Ochoa and Annie Ramirez, June Mar Fajardo (Mr. Basketball), Tots Carlos (Ms. Volleyball), Sarina Bolden (Ms. Football), and Alex Eala (Ms. Tennis).
To honor the country’s Olympic medal winners in Tokyo, Ang provided P22 million in incentives, including P10 million to weightlifter Diaz. Boxers Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio also received P5 million each for winning silver medals, while Eumir Marcial earned P2 million for his bronze medal feat.
