Tug at the heart

Before the Philippines’ game against China in the final of the recent 28th FIBA Asia Championships in Changsha, Nike sports marketing manager Jappy Parulan distributed “special” socks to the Gilas players who were visibly touched by the surprise. On the socks were inscribed the names of a player’s loved ones under the words “Laban Pilipinas.”

Parulan flew in from Manila with the socks a few days before the gold medal battle. The players never knew what hit them. They had no clue as to what Nike had in mind. It was an emotional tug at the heart. Parulan said he coordinated with the Gilas coaching staff, particularly Josh Reyes, in listing every player’s loved ones. For instance, in J. C. Intal’s case, the names of his wife Bianca and soon-to-be-born daughter Lucia were on his socks.

Intal’s wife, who was in Manila, posted a photo of the socks on Instagram. Intal sent the photo to his wife on his phone. She said it made her cry. No doubt, the socks were a reminder that the sacrifice each player went through to play for the country was also for family and loved ones. It was a fitting tribute to the team and a recognition of the hard work that every player put out to bring honor to the flag.

Anticipating an unruly crowd, Filipino supporters of Gilas were advised to bring unmarked jackets in case they had to cover their “Laban Pilipinas” shirts for the championship game between the Philippines and China at the Changsha Social Work College Gym last Saturday.

The idea was to protect the Filipino fans from the ire of rowdy hometowners. Sure enough, when the jeering got out of hand, some Filipino fans put on their unmarked jackets to conceal the Gilas shirts for fear of being singled out by hecklers and hoodlums. The gym capacity was 7,036 including 5,164 permanent seats, 1,780 movable seats, 76 tribune of honor seats and 16 obstacle-free seats. There were less than a hundred Filipino supporters in the venue.

The place was packed to the rafters and tickets were prioritized for Chinese fans. Several Filipinos willing to pay scalpers a high price for tickets were turned away. It seemed like there were no legitimate box office outlets to buy tickets at face value. The suspicion was the organizers were in on the black market trade.

Danny Ignacio, a Gilas diehard who paid his own way to Changsha, couldn’t get his hands on a ticket and watched the final game on TV in his hotel room. A real estate developer, Ignacio has followed the trail of the national team for years. He couldn’t believe the brazen scalping of tickets. Because of high demand, scalpers wouldn’t budge from what they quoted for tickets which were priced out of whack. A ticket with a face value equivalent to P1,800 went for P11,000. In previous games, scalpers and buyers haggled openly. But for the final, bargaining was out of the question.

Security was virtually non-existent in the championship game. Fans poured into the venue and if seats were taken, stood or sat on the aisle steps. Chinese fans behind the Gilas bench screamed invectives at the Filipino players and even mild-mannered J. C. Intal was challenged to a fistfight. There was clear intent to unnerve the Gilas players with an intimidating atmosphere.

Visiting teams were billeted at the 518-room Vaya International Hotel, about a five-kilometer distance from the gym. But the China squad stayed at the plush Kempinski Hotel. When Manila hosted the 2013 FIBA Asia Championships, every team – including the Philippine squad – was booked at the Dusit Thani Hotel to foster the spirit of camaraderie and goodwill. It was different in Changsha where the Chinese team got special treatment.

FIBA officials and referees were booked at the 339-room Xiandai Gloria Grand Hotel which was eight kilometers away from the playing venue. Transportation was provided by electric car. The trip from the hotel to the gym took at least 30 minutes.

The Ramada Plaza Hotel was where the media stayed. It was also where the PBA delegation, led by chairman Robert Non, president/CEO Chito Salud and commissioner Chito Narvasa, was booked.

Changsha is the provincial capital of Hunan which is where Chairman Mao Tse Tung was from. Hunan is China’s 10th largest province and is located in the south bank of the Yangtze River. Among the historical relics in Hunan are the Four Sheep statue which is the largest bronze ware ever discovered, the Mawangdui Tomb where a silk organdy garment was found weighing only 49 grams and the Xinzhui Tomb preserved for over a thousand years known as the eighth wonder of the world.