Chris Tiu believes in chastity before marriage

My friend Roch has been a huge fan of Chris since his Ateneo basketball days. When asked why she likes Chris so much, she says, “He’s someone that you can say is the perfect guy and the man you would love to introduce to parents and friends.” She enumerates: he is intelligent, athletic (and emphasizes that its rare to find those two traits together in one guy), comes from a good family, is wholesome, religious, charitable, friendly, and well rounded. She does make sure to ask, “What’s his flaw? Parang perfect eh.” What could it be? Fan girls of Chris may or may not know the items below, but here are 10 things you should know about Chris Tiu.

1. He bashfully smiles at the thought of people calling him “perfect,” and shares that in his honest opinion, his flaws are his being impatient and passive.

“I’m not very patient, I get ticked off with small things,” Chris shares. He reveals that he has an obsessive-compulsive side and that he has a daily schedule by the hour. So when things run late and he’s not where he’s supposed to be at a certain time, he gets impatient and tends to lose focus.

He also admits to being passive when he should be more active: “Sometimes, when people’s opinions are already offending people who are close to me, I tend not to fight back, I just keep quiet about it. It’s my nature as a person, I’m not confrontational.” He acknowledges that there must be a limit, and that there will come a point that he will have to make a stand. He admits he tried to please everybody when he was younger, but as he grew older, he realized that you can’t please everyone. “Sometimes, I try to be too nice,” Chris reveals.

His and hers: Chris and adorable girlfriend with matching Swatch Touch watches. “This is it! I have found the one,” he says about Swatch.

2. Chris doesn’t smoke, drinks on occasion but has never gotten drunk, has never tried any kind of illegal drug, is turned off by pornography and believes in chastity.

Chris doesn’t smoke, but he did try it once. Who made him try it? His mom! She does not smoke at all, but “she wanted me and my siblings to see how terrible the feeling was, and it worked, I didn’t like it, and I never smoked in my life,” Chris shares. He drinks once in a while with friends, and scotch with Coke is his drink of choice. He admits to having gotten tipsy more than once, but never drunk to the point of vomiting and not remembering things the day after. Some acquaintances have asked him to try taking drugs, and he politely says, “No, thanks.” He has seen pornography in print and on video because of friends, but says: “Personally, I get turned off with it, I can’t stand it.” He is strong in his faith and believes in chastity before marriage, saying, “The consequences are just very detrimental and I don’t think it’s worth it.”

So what’s his vice? “I don’t think it has to be a bad habit as an outlet, it can be traveling, doing new things, meeting new people,” Chris explains. He does admit to biting his nails, picking skin and hair on his face, and his brother Charles reveals that Chris “sleeptalks” (“at minsan, galit pa”).

3. He was told that he was too small to play professional and even international basketball. 

Chris was all-around athletic since childhood. His mom made him try out many different sports, from swimming, to horseback riding, badminton, table tennis, golf, and basketball. It was in fourth grade when Coach Ronnie Mutuc spotted him playing basketball just for fun, and asked him to try out. Coach Ronnie personally called Chris’s house and talked to his mom to convince her to make him try out. He made the grade school team, won championships, went on to the high school team, got recruited to Ateneo, and is now going on three years with the National Team. “Basketball was really the sport that gave me the opportunity to pursue it, that’s why I’m here,” Chris shares.

With Kobe Bryant: “I just want to put the Philippines on the map in terms of basketball.”

4. It’s national pride that made him choose to play for the National Team over the PBA.

During the last PBA draft when some were hoping Chris would be drafted, he chose to stay with Smart Gilas. Many wondered why, and he says: “I guess it’s because of the jersey that we put on, which has the word Pilipinas on it and the flag, it gives a sense of pride,” adding, “I’m not totally closing my doors on the PBA, but for now, I’d rather just stay with the National Team.”

5. One of the most touching things a fan has ever done for him was when a Japanese woman flew over a thousands miles just to watch him play.

In this year’s Jones Cup in Taiwan, a woman in her late 40s gave Chris bread, chocolates or bananas after every game. Apparently she had no Filipino blood, was pure Japanese, and saw him in the Jones Cup a year before. They finally got the chance to meet and talk during the awarding ceremonies.

All the letters, collages, albums and gifts his fans have given him are placed in special boxes in his room.

6. After the “cockroach-in-the-cup” controversy hit his store Happy Lemon, business was not affected at all; in fact, sales still keep going up.

A few weeks ago, an alleged customer of milk tea brand Happy Lemon reported through social media that they had found a cockroach in their cup. The accusations were not proven to be true, and business is still doing well. “Generally the trend is still upward, people want to try it and are talking about it,” Chris says. They found milk tea to be a staple in Hong Kong, Vancouver and other cities, and Chris and his business partners hoped it would do well in Manila. So far so good because with three stores open, this month Happy Lemon will also be opening in Megamall and TriNoma.

7. Chris Tiu in numbers:

Fanfare: “If we make it, I think I can move on…”

8: Current jersey number in the National Team. In Ateneo, he wore 17.

3: Average number of hours a day spent training.

60-plus: Number of Jay Chou items he owns! Chris is a huge fan of the Taiwanese singer, and his collection includes Jay Chou CDs, movie and concert DVDs, caps, matches, stickers, cards, concert tickets, posters, piano pieces and other paraphernalia.

109: Number of blogposts since he started blogging in May 2008 on http://chris-tiu.blogspot.com.

109,689: Number of fans on the Chris Tiu Facebook Fan Page as of Nov. 3, 2011, set up by his supporters, the Tiunatics.

1: Total girlfriends he’s had, ever.

8. He sees his current girlfriend Clarisse as the one he will end up with.

Chris has always preferred to protect their privacy and not talk much about his long-time girlfriend Clarisse, a 26-year-old investment banker, with the public. “As much as possible, I keep her out of the limelight, I don’t want to give people the chance to gossip about her,” Chris shares. He does share however that he met her in sixth grade, courted her when they were in seventh grade, when she didn’t like him (he says he was “chubby, with crew-cut hair”) and gave him a hard time, and they officially got together in their third year of high school. He reveals that since they got together, there were times that they’ve taken a break from the relationship, but never more than a few months. When asked who, between them, initiates fixing things up, he said it was “pantay,” sometimes he did, sometimes she did.

Years ago, during those times they were on a “break,” he was linked to actresses Anne Curtis and Maxene Magalona. I asked him how, despite being linked to different girls and despite being the center of attention of so many fan girls, he’s able to reassure Clarisse of his loyalty and love? “Actions speak louder than words, it’s a matter of communicating well, spending time together and with our families,” Chris says. He finds it hard to share just three things that he loves most about his girlfriend and asks with a smile, “Can it be more?” He beams, “She’s understanding, smart, funny, she’s very grounded, and of course she’s beautiful.”

Men who matter: Chris in venerable company.

9. Chris is now 26, and sees himself getting married before he hits 30.

In an interview for The Philippine STAR in June, 2010, Chris shared that his ideal marrying age is 30. During our interview, when asked if that has changed, he says, “Maybe a little earlier.” Chris explains: “I feel there is so much more good I can do as a married man. God has given me so much blessings and I feel I can share it more through marriage.”

Since he has only had one girlfriend since high school and has never been single for a long time, he has been told many times by friends that he might regret not enjoying the single life before settling down. To this, he answers, “Whatever age you are, if you’re really the type of guy who enjoys being a bachelor, you’ll be a bachelor forever.” He shares that he’s the type of person who’s more settled and would like to start a family early, pointing out that he is lucky to have found the right person. “Sayang naman ang genes ko,” he shares with a laugh, and says he dreams of having little Chrises soon. Maybe three to five he says.

10. The usual retiring age for Pinoys in professional basketball is 35, but Chris does not mind retiring way earlier. Possibly even 29.

“I just want to try to put the Philippines on the map in terms of basketball,” Chris explains. He shares that the next major international tournament the Philippine Team will join is the World Championships in 2014, and that the qualifiers for that is in 2013. Asia has three slots for that, and Chris reveals, “If we make it, I think I can move on after that.”

In five years, he sees himself married with one kid, with his businesses hopefully continually expanding.

Chris is a professional athlete, a businessman, a TV host for values-oriented programs, an ambassador for Habitat for Humanity and World Vision, as well as a Barangay Kagawad in Makati. He is all that, plus a very nice person too. It is human nature for people to try to find flaws in others, maybe because we hold on to the saying “Nobody is perfect.” (Yes, I am sure he doesn’t have six toes on one foot.) I think Chris just seems to make the most out of what he has and the talents he’s been given, is always thankful and grateful, all of which makes his imperfect life as perfect as it can be.

* * *

E-mail the author at askiamsuperbianca@yahoo.comor follow her on twitter@iamsuperbianca.