Top female athletes of ‘25

In last Friday’s column, we listed the country’s top male sports achievers of 2025. Each has a case for top honors as the year’s Most Outstanding Athlete – Carlos Yulo, June Mar Fajardo, EJ Obiena, Carlo Biado, Melvin Jerusalem and Pedro Taduran. On the female side, there were also stars worthy of consideration as the Most Outstanding Athlete, regardless of gender. Here are the top female sports performers of the year just passed.

• Alex Eala. It wasn’t only her success on the court that captivated audiences throughout the tennis world. Eala, 20, brought a sense of gravitas to the game, honoring opponents, win or lose, bringing pride to her country and winning the hearts of fans, no matter where they’re from, with her charisma, character and class. Alexmania is a reality that has rekindled widespread interest in tennis all over the country. Last year, Eala was sensational, becoming the first wildcard to beat three Grand Slam champions in straight sets to reach a WTA 1000 event semis, winning the Guadalajara 125 Open and registering the nation’s first victory in a Grand Slam at the US Open. To cap the season, Eala hit paydirt in singles at the SEA Games. She zoomed from No. 140 to No. 75 to No. 56 to No. 50 then dropped to No. 53 before jumping to a career-high No. 49 in the world ladder last week.

• Chezka Centeno. The Flash from Zamboanga City clinched her second WPA World 10-Ball title in Bali last October. Centeno, 26, also landed a podium finish, bagging silvers, in the 10-Ball event at the World Games and the inaugural World 8-Ball Championships. A three-time SEA Games gold medalist, the pool queen began playing billiards at five and seven years later, made her international debut at the Kremlin Cup in China.

• Kimberly Custodio. She won her third world jiu-jitsu crown in the 45kg division in Bangkok last November then added a gold at the SEA Games in the Ne-Waza 48 kg class. Custodio, 38, continues to reap honors at a “late” age even as she and coach/partner Myron Mangubat are focused on training the next generation of champion combat practitioners in their gym.

• Annie Ramirez. The jiu-jitsu wonder from Camarines Sur took the 47kg title at the World Championships last November, defeating in succession contenders from Canada, South Korea, France and Sweden. Ramirez, 35, is a three-time SEA Games and two-time Asian Beach Games gold medalist with a gold medal each from the Asian Games and Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games.

• Kayla Sanchez. The swimmer emerged as the country’s most bemedalled athlete at the SEA Games last month, claiming three golds and five silvers. Sanchez, 24, represented Canada at the 2020 Olympics where she brought home a silver and bronze then decided to wear the Philippine colors to honor her parents’ roots starting the 2024 Paris Games. In individual events, she holds three national records in long course and nine in short course.

In women’s team events, the Philippine football squad and the beach volley pairs delivered sparkling results at the SEA Games, both ending host Thailand’s long-standing reigns in both sports. The choice of Most Outstanding Athlete of 2025, male or female, boils down to Yulo or Eala. In terms of global impact in a high-profile Olympic sport, Eala is unmatched.