Fil-Am golfer, boxer top bets

Fil-Am golfer Dorothy Joy Delasin and pro boxer Malcolm Tunacao, whose astounding feats abroad stood out in a year of medal-less campaign by the Filipino athletes in the Olympic Games, are the main contenders for this year’s PSA (Philippine Sportswriters Association) Athlete of the Year award on Jan. 18 at the Holiday Inn.

Delasin, spearhead of two national teams in the Southeast Asian Games and the World Amateurs, became the youngest winner at 19 in the US LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) Tour in a quarter century by winning the Giant Eagle Classic in Warren, Ohio last July.

The victory came one year after she copped the US Women’s Amateur crown and it anchored Delasin’s bid to beat the other top rookies from around the world and capture the Rookie of the Year honors in the prestigious LPGA circuit.

>The 22-year-old Tunacao, on the other hand, won the World Boxing Council flyweight crown with a seventh round technical knockout of defending champion Medgeon-Kratingdaeng Gym in Thailand and became the lone reigning world champion following the loss of Joma Gamboa to Japanese Keitaro Hoshino in the WBA minimumweight championship last month.

He fought Japanese challenger Shoji Kobayashi to a draw last August.

Delasin and Tunacao’s exploits stood out in the year about to end although the Sydney debacle by the Filipino Olympians, wherein they failed to win a single medal for the first time in 12 years, lingered on and on for the sports-minded Filipinos.

The PSA, composed of members of the country’s sportswriting fraternity, has invited President Joseph Estrada to grace the rites and award the PSA Athlete of the Year trophy to the year’s top sports achiever in glittering ceremonies.

It will also honor the other top athletes in their respective disciplines, including basketball (pro and amateur), golf (pro and amateur), chess, Formula racing and boxing (pro and amateur).

In recognition of their contribution to Philippine sports by consistently promoting and developing sports on the grassroots level, the PSA will also give citations to various sports groups and entities that have contributed to the grassroots development of sports.