Prieto, PBA 1st commissioner, passes away

MANILA, Philippines - Leo Prieto, the founding commissioner of the PBA whose leadership and passion for basketball made Asia’s first pro loop the leading basketball league in the land, passed away yesterday due to lingering illness. He was 88.

His remains were brought to the Sanctuario de San Antonio at Forbes Park. Interment will be tomorrow.

A true sportman, Prieto held the top PBA post from 1975 to 1983, leading a nine-team league from its infancy through its challenging years to virtually become the country’s national pastime and the only established pro hoop at present.

He was former president of the Manila Jockey Club and steered the Philippine team built around the legendary Carlos Loyzaga to a seventh-place finish in a 15-nation field in the Melbourne Olympics in 1956.

He was also the coach of the famous YCO Painters, which won several national titles in a storied rivalry with the Ysmael Steelers.

Despite professing to be a football man at heart, Prieto showed his passion for basketball even after his retirement from the league in 1983, attending the games at the Araneta Coliseum even after he had suffered a stroke.