Filipino sports headliners of 2012

It was an extremely busy year for sports, with space on the sports pages rapidly running out, as broadcasting hours expanded to include more sports, but who were the ones that didn’t just share the stage, but hogged it in 2012?

Manny Pacquiao. Of course, Manny Pacquiao has been the leading headliner in Philippine sports throughout the year. From his shocking loss of his WBO welterweight belt to Timothy Bradley to his spiritual evolution, the good congressman’s comings and goings have been overly documented. Throw in the tiresome verbal sparring with Floyd Mayweather Jr. and the new public rift between his mother and wife, and you have show business headlines, as well. But the spike in interest in Pacquiao reached fever pitch with his dramatic knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez earlier this month. That will make sure he stays in the limelight throughout 2013.

Nonito Donaire Jr. It is only fitting that Nonito Donaire be one of the top headline-grabbers in 2012. After all, he defied the standards of other world boxing champions by fighting in four title fights this year alone. The last fight, a hurried tussle with Jorge Arce, was probably the WBO superbantamweight king’s finest form. Not content, he insisted on a whirlwind trip back home to honor the fans, and promised he would fight four more times next year. All that and the Fighter of the Year buzz, along with the timing of his latest victory a week after Pacquiao’s loss, have increased The Filipino Flash’s profile greatly.

Erik Spoelstra. In the last three years, we have seen how the crowds that have greeted Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra’s returns have grown exponentially. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and company to an NBA title alone would have done the trick. But his open pride at being Filipino and emphasizing the importance of heritage has scored a lot of points with fans, as well as his promise to keep coming back to the Philippines, win or lose.

PRFU Volcanoes. 2012 was full of breakthroughs for the Volcanoes. They received their first invitation to the prestigious Hong Kong Sevens, where they impressed, notwithstanding a racist joke posted by top contender Fiji Rugby online. They played their first international tournament at home, the HSBC Asian Five Nations (A5N) in June, carried live by ESPN and ABS-CBN. That tournament catapulted them into the Elite Level, the top five in Asia. But they didn’t stop there. The Filipinos qualified for the Rugby Sevens World Cup, where only the top 24 teams in the world can play. It was an amazing run, considering the program only started from scratch six years ago.

Cebu City Sports Commission. They did it again in 2012. When Cebu City Sports Commission chair Ed Hayco was still heading Team Cebu City Dancesport four years ago, they set a Guinness World Record that will stand for a long, long time. Rallying support from the city government, they put together a dance class of 7,770 dancers, almost triple the previous record set in Budapest, Hungary. Since his appointment as the city sports czar, Hayco has managed to get cooperation from all stakeholders. Expanding their free summer sports clinics, they taught hundreds of school teachers chess, and that led to a new world record of over 11,000 players in a single tournament.

Dennis Orcollo. He started the year as the world’s top-ranked billiards player. In May, ESPN the Magazine published a long, exhaustive, glowing tribute calling him the “best money player in the world. They listed all the people Orcollo had beaten, and what made him play with ice in his veins. In the rankings of the World Pool-Billiard Association, he ends the year second only to Jung Lin Chang, who made a killing mostly in eight ball.

Japeth Aguilar. The first Filipino in a US NCAA Division one program in half a century became the first Filipino to be drafted by an NBA D-League team. But former PBA top draftee Japeth Aguilar was cut before making a statement in the Golden State Warriors’ farm system. When asked by this writer what he plans to do next, Aguilar said he hadn’t decided. But he’s staying in the US, proving that the NBA dream is far from dead.

Norman Black. After leading the Ateneo Blue Eagles to five straight UAAP men’s basketball titles, Norman Black returns to the PBA as a head coach. Prior to that, Black was able to successfully put together winning teams despite the abnormal publicity, changes in line-ups, and even injuries. He turned many high school scorers into high-caliber defenders, and launched the careers of many new pro stars. The only coach to have led the defunct Sta. Lucia Realty franchise to a PBA title is hoping success continues with the Talk N Text Tropang Texters.

The Philippine Azkals. The Azkals finally broke a drought dating back to their grandfathers’ days, clinching the Paulino Alcantara Peace Cup. The high-profile footballers were constantly on the road, and made it as high as 143 in the FIFA rankings. The Azkals also reached the semifinals of two other international competitions: the AFC Challenge Cup and the AFF Suzuki Cup. Not bad, considering they sometimes didn’t know what line-up they were playing with.

Without a doubt, most of the personalities on this list will be back here next year. But with many other events in 2013 – including the SEA Games – there will be new faces and new heroes in the new year.