RSA, MVP share PSA top executive plum

MANILA, Philippines — Two of the country’s top businessmen and sports patrons stand side by side in the coming San Miguel Corporation-Philippine Sportswriters Association (SMC-PSA) Annual Awards Night.

San Miguel CEO and President Ramon S. Ang along with First Pacific Company Chairman and CEO Manny V. Pangilinan will be honored as Executives of the Year for working closely together to restore dignity and faith to Philippine basketball in the year just past.

The traditional gala night is set Jan. 29 at the grand ballroom of the Diamond Hotel where the best of the best in Philippine sports in 2023 will be feted in a celebration presented by ArenaPlus, the leading sports entertainment in the Philippines, and major sponsors Cignal, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, Milo, and PLDT/Smart. Also backing the event are Philippine Basketball Association, Rain or Shine, 1-Pacman Partylist of Rep. Mikee Romero, and Premier Volleyball League.

Known as corporate rivals whose competitiveness spilled over to the basketball court, Pangilinan and Ang would set aside their competitive nature and worked together for the benefit of Philippine sports.

The initial outcome came in the form of the country’s successful co-hosting of the FIBA World Cup where the SMC Group came on board as major partner of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas – of which Pangilinan is chairman emeritus – to help defray the staggering cost of staging the event being held in the Philippines for the first time in 45 years.

But their biggest collaboration happened during the 19th Asian Games at a time when Gilas Pilipinas lost the core of its FIBA World Cup team including head coach Chot Reyes.

With barely three weeks left before departing for Hangzhou, China, the two giant corporations held a landmark meeting at the last minute and mapped out the course of action it will take for the country’s Asiad campaign.

Tim Cone was elevated from deputy to head coach of the Philippine team, while players from both the SMC and MVP franchises were made available for inclusion in the Gilas Pilipinas roster.

The partnership produced a historic moment as the underdog Gilas squad came out triumphant and bagged the basketball gold for the first time in 61 years.

Given up for dead, the hastily assembled unit of Cone came back from the grave and pulled off a miraculous 77-76 comeback win in the semifinals against host and defending champion China behind the heroic effort of Justin Brownlee, whose two improbable three pointers in the final 23 seconds lifted the Filipinos to the dramatic victory.

Gilas later took care of business against Jordan in the gold-medal play, 80-70, to regain Asia’s cage supremacy the country last held in 1962 yet.

Incidentally, both Ang and Pangilinan were previously named Executive of the Year individually by the country’s oldest media organization headed by its president Nelson Beltran, sports editor of The Philippine STAR.

Pangilinan was honored with the prestigious award in 2014, while Ang was bestowed the recognition in 2018.