CARLOS “CALOY” YULO, Ernest John “EJ” Obiena and the members of the national women’s football team known as the Filipinas will be honored with Major Awards during the San Miguel Corp.-Philippine Sportswriters Association (SMC-PSA) Awards Night at the grand ballroom of the Diamond Hotel on March 6.
Their selection for the prestigious award was a no-brainer for the PSA.
Yulo clinched a silver in vault and bronze in parallel bars during the 51st FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Liverpool England, while Obiena pole vaulted to an Asian men’s record at 5.94 meters for a historic bronze medal and the world No. 3 ranking in the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
The Filipinas? They punched a first-ever ticket for the country to the FIFA Women’s World Cup following their third place finish in the Asian Football Confederation Women’s Asia Cup under Australian coach Alen Stajcic.
They will share the accolade with 12 other athletes during the gala night presented by the Philippine Sports Commission and Cignal TV, and supported by the Philippine Olympic Committee, Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, Milo, Smart, MVP Sports Foundation, Rain or Shine, 1Pacman Rep. Mikee Romero, Philippine Basketball Association, OKBet and the International Container Terminal Services Inc.
The other recepients of Major Awards are boxing’s Carlo Paalam, jui jitsu’s Meggie Ochoa and Kimberly Anne Custodio, karatedo’s Junna Tsukii and billiards’ Rubilen Amit, Carlo Biado, and Johann Chua, as well as weightlifter Vanessa Sarno, beach volleyball duo of Jovelyn Gonzaga and Sisi Rondina, esports organization Blacklist International, jockey Jessie Guca and champion horse Boss Emong.
The country’s first Olympic gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo is the recipient of the coveted Athlete of the Year award for the second straight time.
Yulo, 22 also won three gold medals in vault, parallel bars and floor exercise at the 9th Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Doha, Qatar, while adding a silver in the all-around.
He, too, was the most successful Filipino athlete at the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam with five golds—all-around, floor exercise, still rings, vault and horizontal bar.
Obiena also topped a number of pole vault meets in Europe and retained his gold at the Vietnam SEA Games with a new meet record of 5.46 meters.
The Filipinas, meanwhile, added the Asean Football Federation Women’s Championship trophy following a 3-0 shutout of four-time champion Thailand in the gold medal play.