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SUNDAY, AUGUST 20, 2017

Business

Ray S. Eñano, Editor / Roderick dela Cruz, Issue Editor business@manilastandard.net

2 BIGGEST SOFTWARE FIRMS OPERATE GLOBAL HUBS IN PH

Digits vice president for customer experience and information systems management Glenn Ong

COMPUTER SHOP TURNS INTO TOP TECH HUB

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DIGITAL TRANSFORMER

Infor director for solution consulting in Asia Pacific Cas Brentjens

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WO of the world’s largest software companies that play crucial roles in the digital transformation of businesses actually employ thousands of Filipinos in their centers of excellence in the Philippines.

Infor, an American company considered as the third largest provider of enterprise applications and services, has its world’s second largest center of excellence in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig which serves clients around the world. Its largest is in India.

“We have a large center of excellence here. We have more than 1,700 employees here who work at projects around the world,” says Cas Brentjens, the director for solution consulting in Asia Pacific of Infor.

Infor, which took over Lawson Software in 2011, has been in the Philippines since 1998.

It has over 300 customers in the Philippines, including the likes of ePerformax and Wilcon Depot Inc. The US company develops business software for specific industries in the cloud. It has 15,000 employees across 168 offices globally, more than 1,650 partners, 1,200 support experts and over 90,000 customers in 194 countries.

Brentjens, a Dutch expatriate who is based in Singapore, says in an interview in Makati City that Infor’s center of excellence in Taguig provides implementation support and development support for clients around the world.

“Our development teams work closely with the team here on building new products and enhancing the products,”says Brentjens.“Almost every function that you can see in a software company, we have presence here, including sales, solution consulting, implementation consulting, development services and implementation services.”

SAP Philippines managing director Ryan Poggi (left) and head of analytics and insight Kathleen Muller

Meanwhile, SAP, a German company widely considered as the world’s largest business software provider, has more than 1,700 customers and over 1,800 employees in the Philippines.

“SAP Philippines started 22 years ago. We started with three employees, one location and one customer.

Today, after 22 years, we have more than 1,700 customers. Our employee base, including Concur [Technologies], is in the region of 1,800 employees.

And we have four locations across Metro Manila,” says SAP Philippines managing director Ryan Poggi, during the Asian Innovators Summit 2017 at Makati Shangri La Hotel.

“Those locations service not only the sales and operation side of the business, but also the offshore service centers. We have service centers servicing our customers globally in specific solutions sets. We also have our internal shared services base here,” says Poggi, a South African national.

“The last 22 years for SAP in the Philippines has seen tremendous growth, not only in terms of customer side, but also its contribution in terms of employee base to the Philippines,” says Poggi.

Both Infor and SAP believe that companies need to embark on a journey of digital transformation to stay relevant to customers.

Brentjens says companies that fail to join the digital bandwagon run the risk of being left behind. “If you look at the current Fortune 500, 40 percent of those companies were not in the Fortune 500 ten years ago. This also means that a lot of Fortune 500 have been replaced by newer ones. You see enormous growth of new companies becoming the largest companies in the world,” he says.

“There is a risk that companies will become irrelevant if they do not transform. Companies, when they do not transform, will become irrelevant and stay behind,” says Brentjens, in pushing for digital transformation of companies.

Brentjens says digital transformation involves having cloud-based and mobile solutions. “If you look at the elements of digital transformation, it is cloud based, it is often mobile and phone-based business transaction. It is happening everywhere.

Everybody has access to the same technology these days. Everybody has access to mobile platform. Everybody has access to e-commerce platform. I think it is happening everywhere,” he says.

Infor saw a 17-percent growth in revenue in the Philippines in 2016, according to Brentjens. “We always want to do better than last year,” he says. The company is promoting its solutions to all industries, particularly asset-intensive industries, service industries, healthcare, tourism, retail, logistics, Turn to C2

TRADITIONAL BREADS GET MAKEOVER IN THE coastal town of Balayan in Batangas, residents there live the sweet life. Home to major sugar manufacturer Batangas Sugar Central Inc. and with the thriving industries of sugarcane, coconuts, and corn, it is no surprise that even the town’s breads are tinged with a sweet flavor, memorable even to outsiders.

“I remember this ‘Balayan Bakery,’ they have this hot pandesal being sold all day long,” says Roy Tabocolde, a 21-year-old baking enthusiast from Iloilo City, referring to a hometown establishment whose owner was a native of Balayan, Batangas.

“It was so special that people

would wait for 30 minutes just to get their pandesal I could still remember the sweetness of their pandesal and have never tasted anything near to their version,” Greegy says, noting how Balayan Bakery gave Ilonggos a different “twist” on the traditional Filipino pandesal.

Roy went on to study at St. ThereseMTC Colleges La Fiesta in Iloilo City, but he never forgot the taste of the Balayan Bakery breads. Together with fellow student Greegy Cabarrubias, Roy went on to join and win last year’s Tinapay Natin Pinoy Bread Baking Competition, a nationwide baking contest organized

by Aboitiz food business unit Pilmico

(in partnership with Max’s Corner Bakery) that celebrates local bread creations and strengthens pride of local produce.

N o d o u b t , B a l aya n’s u n i q u e pandesal—sweeter and tastier than usual—was on Roy’s mind as they concocted their original breads that offered a modern take on well-loved food items: Caramel Sesame Roll, Cagayan de Oro Pastel, and Cream Cheese Ensaymada.

“When we tested the recipes that we submitted into the competition, we envisioned it to be a specialty of the house. One that can be taken as a pasalubong, a merienda or a potluck

treat for any social gathering,”Greegy says R oy a n d G re e g y h ave s i n c e graduated from college, finishing their final year as scholars, and their Caramel Sesame Roll, Cagayan de Oro Pastel, and Cream Cheese Ensaymada are now being sold as special edition items at Max’s Corner Bakery branches nationwide (until October 2017), with partial sales going to Roy and Greegy and their chosen charity.

This year, bakers, hobbyists, and even baking enthusiasts will now have the chance to join the second installment of Tinapay Natin, launched at Max’s Scout Tuazon in Quezon City in June.

WHO would have thought that a humble computer shop would transform into one of the most successful tech giants in the Philippines? Digits Trading Corp. began as a modest computer shop sidelining as a gadget assembling hub.

Charles Paw started the company back in 2002, carrying only his passion and grit, and envisioning a company that would become the foremost hub of gadgetry in the Philippines.

In time, the business included retail in its portfolio by launching Beyond the Box, which is an Apple premium reseller and authorized service provider, and Digital Walker, which is the premier hub of gadgets and accessories in the Philippines.

Additionally, Digits supplies to different dealers and organizations like Globe, Astrovision and Lazada.

Despite its current status, the path to success wasn’t easy. Glenn Richmond Ong, Digits’ vice president for customer experience and information systems management, says they faced various challenges, but the toughest and by far the most ironic was a backlog in their technology.

Describing how their situation used to be, he talks about their cashiers still using manual receipts and their IT teams receiving hundreds of tickets a month regarding unstable Internet connection.

When it was made clear that Internet connectivity was the most pressing issue, they decided as a company that investing in a stable and strong Internet connection was a must. Thus, they did a scan of four vendors selling network connectivity solutions, before finally deciding to go with Globe Telecom’s offered solutions.

Globe’s Managed Wi-Fi and wired connection were installed in their head office, a process which Globe took care of through network rehabilitation of the entire building.

The company also subscribed to many other digital solutions, such as service units relying on Globe postpaid, the use of G Suite (which Google hosts in partnership with Globe), and managed CCTV in their warehouses.

Besides the effectiveness of these solutions, what appealed to Glenn was the convenience. He shares, “I only had to speak to one company, and they were able to provide a lot of different solutions that really helped us. We really see how happy the employees are now. I think it’s my way of also changing the culture. If you are a digital company, and within your company you aren’t digital yet, how do you live out the digital lifestyle?”

More than anything, having reliable Internet connection has worked wonders for Digits’ owner and its employees. It provides them with a sense of assurance that whenever they work on something, the work that they have put effort into won’t go to waste.

Glenn states that this has improved productivity and allowed them to look forward to optimizing their other business operations through digitization.

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Infor has expanded its portfolio of solutions to include artificial intelligence, Internet of Things and data science. Brentjens says these solutions are designed to make jobs easier for people. “Everybody has to emerge and grow. At the moment, a robot can take over a job, that you may think means a loss of job, but you can also think that maybe it is not the job that you really want to have. Someone needs to program the robot, someone needs to maintain the robot. People have to move to the next level of jobs,” he says.

“We see any job is changing as far as digital transformation is concerned, including mine.

Artificial intelligence won’t take jobs away. But someone needs to program artificial intelligence. Everybody’s job is moving on,” he says.

Poggi of SAP says the recent years saw the biggest changes in technology.

“Our world is changing. Sometimes, it is said so often that we become immune to that. But the changes are real and they are bringing catch phrases like IoT, digital disruption, digital tsunami, across industries and economies into our daily lives. In the last two years alone, 90 percent of the world’s data has been generated. Over the next two years, there is an expectation of 40 percent growth in the adoption of business networks.

By the end of the decade, we expect to see 212 billion things, from cars to heavy equipment to home appliances, being connected,” says Poggi.

Poggi says these changes present opportunities for businesses. “They are opening new markets, creating new routes to revenue and providing unprecedented opportunities for companies,” he says.

Kathleen Muller, an SAP executive who heads its analytics and insights division in Southeast Asia, says the company sees massive opportunities in the Philippines.

“We see this manifest in organizations where the lines are starting to get blurred across industries and across the lines of business. When we talk about massive opportunities, we have an amazing population in the Philippines that is clamoring for the adoption of technology such as transportation platforms, social media platforms to allow us to live better, for us to focus further on most important things which is quality of life and quality of work. That challenges businesses today not just to look at their products and services, but improve the impact of products and services on consumers,” says Muller who grew up in the Philippines.

Poggi says digital technologies now enable small and medium enterprises to catch up with old conglomerates.

“What we see in the digital economy is that barriers to entry are reducing, which make competition from the outside much easier. It also means that opportunities for companies now have easier access to much broader market. The opportunity there is much more significant,” says Poggi.

“Roughly 98 percent of our customers are considered SMEs,” he says.

SAP recently launched a suite of IoT solutions as a part of the SAP Leonardo digital innovation system.

A new global study by SAP, supported

by Oxford Economics, says 84 percent of global companies believe that digital transformation is important to their survival in the next five years, but only three percent have completed company-wide efforts.

Enterprises in the Philippines, meanwhile, are predicted to attain a macroeconomic scale over the next three to four years.

A study by IDC says that as digital technologies emerge, it will also change the way local organizations operate.

By 2020, about 25 percent of top 1,000 companies in the Philippines will be dependent on their ability to create products, services and experiences that are digitally enhanced.

“As Philippine businesses transform to become digital enterprises, it is important for them to recalibrate their approach to technology and understand how digital solutions can help them intelligently connect people, things and processes across the enterprise. This is the winning mindset that will help them become digital leaders in their respective industries and we are excited to work with our customers to help them define their digital future,” says Poggi.

Roderick T. dela Cruz

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TIP STUDENTS DEVELOP LAKE-ACTIVATED BATTERY

TEAM of engineering students from the Technological Institute of the Philippines topped a Lopez Group-supported interschool competition for the best renewable energy idea or solution for poor, rural communities.

“iLawa”, a submersible deferred-action battery system developed by Team Blade TIP, bested nine other finalists to win the grand prize in Pasig City during the Sikat Design Challenge interschool tilt.

One team each from the University of San Carlos and Ateneo de Manila University emerged runners-up. USC’s Team Kahayag entered “Kaplag”, a wind turbine for lighting and alternative gardening; while AdMU’s Team Agilas submitted “Buhawi”, a dynamic vertical axis wind turbine.

By topping the competition, Team Blade TIP members received from SSCFI a P200,000 cash prize and a free trip to Semakau Island, Asia’s first micro-grid hybrid facility located in Singapore. The USC and AdMU teams each received a P150,000 cash prize.

A portion of the cash prize goes to further developing the prototype and eventually, its full implementation in the community.

Sikat Solar Challenge Foundation Inc., a non-stock, non-profit company, holds the annual school competition, now in its second 11-month cycle, as part of its advocacy to promote renewable energy development and use. Sikat Design Challenge is the country’s first annual inter-university competition that focuses on attracting college students RE solutions for possible application in rural communities.

First Gen Corp., along with subsidiary Energy Development Corp. and their parent company First Philippine Holdings Corp., supports the Sikat Design Challenge.

First Gen, the primary holding company of FPH for power generation and energyrelated businesses, produces electricity using clean and low carbon sources of fuel.

Through EDC, First Gen taps RE sources such as hydro, geothermal, wind and solar, to produce electricity. All three are Lopez Group companies.

TIP students pose with a mock check of their P200,000 prize money and the prototype of a submersible deferred-action battery system, called “iLawa”, after topping a Lopez Group-supported interschool competition for the best renewable energy idea or solution for poor, rural communities. The winners are (from left) Erica Lois Vinculado, Niel Jon Carl Aguel, Eduardo Narciso Jr., Paul Vincent Nonat and Ana Luz Callao

TIP’s iLawa features a submersible metalair battery turned inside out. Through such design, the battery exposes the electrodes to a body of water that acts as the electrolyte. A buoy holds the batteries afloat while they harvest electricity for LED lights attached to the device. iLawa’s byproduct also offers the potential to alleviate the worsening algal blooms in Laguna Bay by reducing phosphate concentration in the lake water. Algal blooms hamper the growth of fish in the lake, thereby affecting the livelihood of fishermen in Talim.

“With iLawa, we are able to provide a cheaper and clean alternative source of electricity that increases productivity of fishermen at nighttime and also the security of community,” says TIP engineering student Paul Nonat.

The TIP students conceptualized their

winning entry while undergoing rural immersion in a fishing community in Talim, an island in the middle of Laguna Bay in Cardona, Rizal. All participants in the 11-month Sikat competition are encouraged to undergo the immersion.

The USC students conceptualized their entry during their immersion at the Upper Pilihan Area, Dalaguete, Cebu. The AdMU students, on the other hand, came up with their entry during their stay at Islas De Gigantes, Iloilo.

“What our 40 participating teams have achieved with their ideas and hard work, and the lives they have touched along the way is truly inspirational to us. From the start, it was our intention to ‘inspire the youth’.Little did we know that it would be a two-way street,” said SSCFI executive director Al Santos.

ODYSSEY EXTENDS HELP TO OVER 2,000 BENEFICIARIES ODYSSEY Foundation Inc., the corporate social responsibility ar m of CDO -Foodsphere, extended assistance to more than 2,000 beneficiaries under its Nutrition, Education, Environment, Livelihood and Service to Humanity program in fiscal year 2016-2017.

OFI executive director Alejandro Danao Jr. said the NEELS program represents the five pillars that the foundation is operating on, in its bid to contribute to nation building.

In its 2016 accomplishment report, OFI said 1,197 mostly undernourished children benefitted from its nutrition program called Gabay Nutrisyon.

Gabay Nutrisyon aims to provide the physical nourishment the children need to grow and become healthy and productive individuals.

In the fiscal year 2016-2017, OFI administered supplemental feeding projec ts in several barangays in Valenzuela City; Malvar, Batangas; and Dona Remedios Trinidad in Bulacan, yielding a total of 881 beneficiaries.

“An average of 75-percent increase in weight of the beneficiaries was noted based on National Nutrition Council standard,” OFI said in a report.

The foundation also teamed up with other non-government organizations such as ABS-CBN

Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation Inc., Trinity Home for Children and religious groups to conduct nutrition programs among 554 children in different parts of the country.

This brought the total number of children beneficiaries reached by Gabay Nutrisyon Program to 19,500 as of March 30, 2017, or since OFI launched the program more than a decade ago.

In its education program, OFI reached out to 300 beneficiaries, who are mostly indigent elementary school students and children with special needs. The foundation distributed school

supplies to four public elementary schools in Valenzuela City and hygienic kits to children with special needs.

OFI said its environment program had 100 beneficiaries last year. The program involved tree planting and waste management activities as well as Adopt-AnEstero project.

Another 501 beneficiaries benefited from Gabay Hanapbuhay, the livelihood program of OFI last year. The foundation conducted livelihood training to equip beneficiaries with the necessary skills in several barangays in Quezon City and Valenzuela City.

OFI is now using post-evaluation tools to assess the effectiveness of the project.

On the Service to Humanity leg of the program, OFI reported 232 beneficiaries, including 50 families in Tacloban City, Leyte who transferred to their new homes in June 2016, after their former houses were flattened by typhoon Yolanda in 2013.

OFI teamed up with Habitat for Humanity Philippines for the housing project for Yolanda t yphoon vic tims. OFI also conducted medical missions in Valenzuela City and Malvar, Batangas last year.

The foundation is led by CDOFoodsphere founders Corazon Ong and Jose Ong as chairwoman and vice chairman, respectively.

Sports Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) commissioner Mon Fernandez celebrates with Tabal

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SUNDAY, AUGUST 20, 2017 randyproject@yahoo.com

Tabal whoops it up with a group of Filipino supporters

SWEET GOLD, REVENGE FOR MARY JOY TABAL

By Randy Caluag

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UTRA JAYA, Malaysia—Playing true to form—and her words—Rio Olympian Mary Joy Tabal poured her might in the women’s marathon event to hand Team Philippines its first gold medal in the Southeast Asian Games here.

The Cebuana lass, standing no taller than five feet, negotiated the 42.195-kilometer footrace with the best time of 2 hours, 48 minutes at 26 seconds and stood tallest at the podium against rivals from Vietnam and Thailand.

It was a dominating performance for Tabal as she led from start to finish despite the lack of sleep going into the early morning event.

She was both excited and nervous.

“Kada hakbang ko noong una ay napakabigat dahil parang bitbit ko ang lahat ng mga paghihirap ko bago lumaban. Ninenerbiyos ako nung umpisa pero tuwing naririnig ko ang hiyawan ng mga Pilipino sa ruta lumalakas ang katawan ko,” she said.

Tabal, with the Philippine flag wrapped around her, celebrated with a throng of Filipino supporters after crossing the finish.

Tears fell as she received her gold medal, which was made sweeter by dethroning the SEA Games defending champion in Natthaya Thanaronnawat of Thailand, who placed third with a clocking of 2:58:17 behind silver medal finisher Hoang Thi Tanh of Vietnam (2:55:53).

Enjoying a wide lead over Hoang, Tabal received a bottled mineral water from Philippine AthleticsTrack and Field Association president Philip Ella Juico. They hugged each other after the race.

Also waiting at the finish were Philippine Sports Commission Commissioner Ramon Fernandez and PSC Executive Director Atty. Carlo Abarquez.

Jeson Agravante, the Philippines’ bet in the male division, failed to finish the race after suffering cramps

on the left leg in the last five kilometers.

Back in Manila, PSC chairman Butch Ramirez congratulated Tabal for her victory and expressed hope “it (feat) can break more gold medals.”

Ramirez said he informed President Rodrigo Duterte right away, through his executive assistant Bong Go “that Ms. Tabal just gave us the first gold, 49 to go (on Cynthia Carrion’s medal projection)” Carrion, the chef de mission of Team Philippines, is looking at 50 gold medals for the country’s campaign.

Kayla gives up sprint crown

On the track, reigning Southeast Asian Games sprint queen Kayla Richardson will relinquish her crown in the women’s 100-meter run to focus on the 200-meter and relay events when the athletics competition of the 29th SEA Games gets going Tuesday at the KL Sports City here.

The 17-year old Richardson said she’s more comfortable competing in the 200-meter run as well as in the 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays despite becoming the youngest century dash champion in the history of the biennial meet in 2015 in Singapore.

“I don’t really want to say that I am giving it up, but this is not the event I have been training for,” said the University of Southern California (USC) freshman. “I will also be running in the 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays.”

Richardson’s father, Jeffrey, said pulling his daughter out of the century dash is a logical move.

“The only reason Kayla is skipping the 100 is that she hasn’t run the race in

Mary Joy Tabal kisses her gold medal

over a year and her coach at USC wants to focus on the 200-meter race,” he said.

“She is very capable of winning the gold in the 200.”

Cray ready to defend titles

Filipino-American Eric Shawn Cray will be bracing to defend his men’s 100-meter and 400-meter hurdles titles on the same day on Tuesday.

Cray, a two-time Olympian and record-holder in the century dash, vowed that he will not surrender his crowns despite the very tight schedule in which both events will be played less than an hour apart.

His schedule begins at 3:10 p.m. with the start of the 100-meter heats followed by the 400-meter low hurdle preliminaries at 4 p.m.

“I’ll go for both. I’m not gonna hold off and I’ll go out there to win the gold,” said Cray, who is bracing a tight finish in the century dash against a rising Malaysian sprinter.

Injuries deal major blow

In the midst of the athletics team’s celebration, it suffered a major blow when

Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association president Popoy Juico (first row, right) joins Tabal and the other winners at the podium

gold-medal prospects Ernest John Obiena and Patrick John Unso crashed with injuries few days before the competitions begin.

The European-trained Obiena suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee while Patrick Unso had a recurring hamstring injury that makes it hard for him to compete.

Juico admitted that the development is a major setback, but they have to move

on and pin their hopes on other athletes who are ready to surpass the federation’s five gold medals in the previous SEA Games in Singapore.

“We win some, we lose some; that’s the way of life,” said Juico shortly after Tabal’s gold-medal victory.

“We are all saddened by the bad news, but we have to live with it. It’s just that the kid (Obiena) really wanted to win and is so determined to bring honor to the country.”

GILAS BEGINS BID FOR GOLD KUALA LUMPUR—The Philippines kicks off its quest for its 17th gold medal when it battles Thailand in the men’s basketball competition of the 29th Southeast Asian Games on Sunday at the MABA Stadium here.

After reigning supreme in the Southeast Asian Basketball Association (Seaba) Men’s Championship in Manila last May, hopes are high on Gilas Pilipinas despite the vast improvement of its competitors.

For one, Thailand, whom they will face at 9:30 pm following the 7:15 pm battle between the Philippines and Singapore in the women’s division, had shown tremendous improvement after winning the bronze medal in the Seaba tourney and nearly pulling the rug from under the Filipinos in the semifinals of the previous SEA Games in Singapore, 75-80.

The Filipinos also had some anxious moments before escaping Indonesia, 72-64, in the gold-medal match.

And Gilas Pilipinas head coach Jong Uichico humbly acknowledges that.

“That’s why we have to be consistent,” he said shortly after arriving in this bustling Malaysian capital late Friday. “The field had greatly improved. Everybody’s now playing well. We now have to work hard and prove that we deserve the crown.”

Gilas will not have the luxury of having a Marcus Douthit or Andray Blatche, but Filipino-German Christian Standhardinger will serve as its naturalized player to add power and ceiling to the relatively thin frontline that only has 6-foot-7 Troy Rosario and 6-foot-5 Kobe Paras as inside operators.

Despite suffering a stiff neck in the Fiba Asia Cup in Beirut, Standhardinger flew in here from Manila late Saturday to make himself available against the Thais.

Two-time SEA Games gold medalist Mac Belo also made the team as he was tapped as a last-minute replacement for injured Carl Bryan Cruz while Gilas coach Chot Reyes is also expected to be in town to help Uichico plot the Nationals’ goldmedal campaign.

“With Christian on board, at least we’ll have some size,” said Uichico, shooting down concerns about the Nationals’ lack of a natural center.

“Christian would be able to help Troy and Kobe. At least medyo hindi tayo maagrabyado sa rebounding.”

Also campaigning for the Philippines are Ray Parks, Mike Tolomia, Baser Amer, Kiefer Ravena, Von Pessumal, Almond Vosotros, Kevin Ferrer and Raymar Jose.

Uichico reiterated that the tourney wouldn’t be a cakewalk, especially since they are playing in Kuala Lumpur – the site of the Philippines’ historic setback in the SEA Games in 1989.

“There’s always pressure in the SEA Games,” he said. “We just have to work hard to be able to handle it.”

SAN LAZARO LEISURE PARK HOSTS 9TH MAYOR RAMON BAGATSING MEMORIAL RACING FESTIVAL MANILA Jockey Club Inc. (MJCI), the premier horseracing club in the country and one of Asia’s oldest, will be hosting the 9th Mayor Ramon Bagatsing Memorial Racing Festival on the first weekend of September at the San Lazaro Leisure Park in Carmona, Cavite.

The two-day annual event brings together the fastest thoroughbreds in the country today, featuring stakes races from Philracom’s Division I to Division III, including special races from major corporate sponsorsand partners of the Bagatsing Family.

The Bagatsing Racing Festival is held in honor of the late Manila Mayor and former Congressman, Ramon D. Bagatsing Sr. The memorial event aims to continue his legacy of supporting the horse racing industry and provide social and public welfare assistance through the Kabaka Foundation, mirroring two of his past office’s mandate the Philippine Charity

Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and the Philippine Red Cross.

Already in its ninth installment, the racing festival brings more excitement and premium horse racing prizes across the weekend.

Sponsored cash prizes spread over the two-day event await the winners.

The cash prizes, along with the traditional gift prizes for the winning horse’s team, will be awarded beginning September 2, while the more luxurious prized races will be held the following day.

Major sponsors include the Philippine Racing Commission (PHILRACOM), Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), Resorts World Manila and Solaire Resort & Casino.

Among other race sponsors include Manila Jockey Club (MJC), City of Dreams, Tiger Resorts & Leisure, EEG Development Corporation, and Smart Communications.

A parallel gaming industry entity,

the Manila Cockers Club (MCC), will sponsor one of the races in a show of support and unity with the horse racing industry.

The theme for this year’s Mayor Ramon Bagatsing Racing Festival is: “UNITY: Race as One” and will feature horses from all three Racing Clubs in a special feature race.

The Philippine Racing Commission has fully supported the rejuvenation of the industry and this year’s Bagatsing Racing Festival will serve as the springboard for more collaborated efforts to usher in a new era of milestones for the horse racing industry.

In nearly a decade of its continued existence, the Bagatsing Cup and the Mayor Ramon Bagatsing Racing Festival, have been established as some of MJC’s premier events in its racing calendar.

To this day, it continues to bring in a record number of viewers, participants and sales both on and off the race track.

Thus far, the record breaking

sales of the Bagatsing Racing Festival is P43,281,228.00 garnered from the 2014 edition of the memorial racing event, the highest total gross sales in recent memory.

The festival is now likened to the Gran Copa de Manila of yesteryear. It is well well-matched that the revival of the Gran Copa de Manila was initiated by the late Mayor Ramon D. Bagatsing Sr. during the 70s at MJCI’s San Lazaro Hippodrome, now his legacy lives on with the Bagatsing Racing Festival at the San Lazaro Leisure Park.

The Manila Jockey Club was established in 1867 and is one of the oldest existing racing clubs in the Asia Pacific region. MJCI, as a business entity, was formally incorporated in1937.

MJCI operates the San Lazaro Leisure Park (SLLP) in Carmona, Cavite, featuring world class horseracing, gaming, and hospitality facilities. It is the first “racino” in Asia, combining a race track andcasino in one venue.

Mayor Ramon Bagatsing

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SUNDAY, AUGUST 20, 2017 Riera U. Mallari, Editor / Reuel Vidal, Issue Editor / Randy Caluag, Issue Editor

sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

WATER DEFENDERS GET THEIR REVENGE

ALIPURE Water Defenders exacted revenge from erstwhile tormentors Pocari Sweat with a decisive sweep of their best-of-three championship series to win the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference crown.

Two months after getting foiled at the first crack at a PVL title, BaliPure came back better, stronger and hungrier.

BaliPure beat Pocari Sweat in Game 2 – 25-20, 19-25, 25-23, 26-24 – to sweep their best-of-three series and capture the championship diadem at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan.

The Water Defenders squandered a huge lead midway in the fourth but fought back from one down late in the frame behind superb blocking then leaned on setter Jasmine Nabor’s smarts to finally foil the Lady Warriors in a wild ending to a thrilling finale.

BaliPure, which took Game One via sweep, 25-22, 25-19, 25-22, thus avenged its finals setback to Pocari Sweat in sudden death in the Open Conference, which stretched the Lady Warriors’ run of championships to three in as many

at 18-13 in the fourth, the Water Defenders lost their poise in the face of the big Pocari rally with the Lady Warriors racking up six of the next seven points to force a 19-all count then Myla Pablo soared for a kill to lift Pocari to a 22-21 lead.

But after an Aiko Urdas push that forced another tie, the Water Defenders came through with back-to-back kills blocks, only to yield the next two points, the last a block off Soltones before Soltones, who later copped the Finals MVP honors, and Nabor delivered the winning points for the Water Defenders.

There will not be a repeat of their previous failure. BaliPure won the first set of their sudden death for the Reinforced Conference crown last June but wavered in the next three.

This allowed Pocari Sweat to nail the victory and seal a third straight champion-

Members of the BaliPure Water Defenders team whoop it up at center court after completing their surprise sweep of threetime champion Pocari Sweat to capture the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference crown. PVL photo

tries.

Nabor, coming in late for Angelica Cayuna, opted not to set up their hitters and instead came through with a dump, catching the Lady Warriors’ defense offguard for the championship point.

Grethcel Soltones shoved the Water Defenders to 25-24 lead on a power crosscourt hit in the earlier BaliPure offense.

Up 2-1 in sets and ahead

ship in the country’s premier women’s volleyball league.

A more mature, disciplined Water Defenders came back strong to beat Pocari. BaliPure now had the tools and experience.

They used that and won to savor the sweet taste of a championship victory.

“It’s a different kind of feeling winning a championship. I just relied on my players’ aggressiveness,”

Christian Standhardinger

FIBA.com

CHRISTIAN REINFORCES GILAS TEAM TO SEAG

By Peter Atencio

BaliPure Water Defenders spiker Grethcel Soltones (right) hammers in a kill past Pocari Sweat blocker Gyzelle Sy (12). PVL photo

said BaliPure coach Roger Gorayeb, whose team had to get past an Alyssa Valdez-less Creamline in sudden death as well.

Pocari Sweat advanced to the championship first with a playoff victory over Hairy Fairy Air Force.

BaliPure matched Pocari Sweat’s victory by repeating over Creamline, 25-22, 2725, 25-23, in their side of the sudden death to seal a title clash with the Lady Warriors for the second consecutive conference.

After a two of five-setters in the semifinals, the Water Defenders won the game that mattered most. The Water Defenders jumped on Julia Morado’s service error and then banked on Risa Sato’s quick attack to beat the Cool Smashers.

BaliPure lost the Reinforced Conference crown to Pocari Sweat last June. They wanted another chance and got it. The Water Defenders dropped the semis opener, 19-25, 25-13, 26-28, 25-15, 7-15, but won the second 25-19, 19-25, 25-16, 18-25, 15-13 to force a deciding Game 3.

This championship didn’t come easy. The Water Defenders first had to over-

BaliPure Water Defenders Risa Sato (11) and Grethcel Soltones (5) try to block the spike attempt of Pocari Sweat’s Myla Pablo (right). PVL photo

come the disappointment of missing a championship last conference when they bowed to Pocari Sweat.

BaliPure then had to survive the spirited challenge

of Creamline before gaining a second chance at redemption.

They made sure this time around to win their first PVL crown.

GILAS Pilipinas will not be playing too many powerhouses in the 2017 Southeast Asia Games but head coach Jong Uichico doesn’t want to take any chances.

Uichico has summoned Fil-German cager Christian Standhardhinger, who will join the national squad in its opening game today, Sunday.

His presence will add height and heft to the Gilas Cadet squad led by their younger players including Kiefer Ravena, Troy Rosario and Mike Tolomia. Uichico wants to make sure they won’t be shorthanded against dangerous Thailand which will be the team’s opening game opponent.

Uichico says he feels uncomfortable with their schedule in the 30th Southeast Asian Games men’s basketball tournament.

Thailand is their opponent in their opening game tonight and they are not to be taken lightly.

“We prefer not to play Thailand in our first game, but it’s there already,” said Uichico before the team left for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The Thais will have half-American standout Tyler Lamb in their roster, and the Gilas Cadets will face a big challenge with him around.

“That’s why mabigat ang Group A,” said Uichico.

The Fil-German Standhardinger will be a key addition to the SEA Games squad.

Standhardinger was born on July 4, 1989 in Munich to Filipina mother Elizabeth Santos Hermoso who traces her roots to Angono, Rizal. Growing up in Germany, Standhardinger’s maternal grandfather, Boy Hermoso – who played in the Philippines’ CYMCA basketball championship in the 1950s – introduced him to basketball.

Standhardinger played for the national under-18 team of Germany in 2007.

He acquired his Philippine passport after he became 16 years old and is eligible to play for the Philippines but only as a naturalized player .

Standhardinger joined the Philippine national men’s basketball in June, 2017. He played with the team at the 2017 William Jones Cup and the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup. Standhardinger replaced Andray Blatche as the team’s naturalized player after the latter reportedly pulled out because of concerns over the situation in the host country Lebanon.

Team Pilipinas is not only bracketed with Thailand, they are also in the company of Myanmar and Malaysia.

According to Uichico’s scouting reports, Thailand wil be a very different team from the one they faced in the Southeast Asian Basketball Association men’s championship.

This is why Gilas Pilipinas Cadets needs to adjust right away.

WALKER, SUMANG TOW BLACKWATER TO VICTORY

By Reuel Vidal

SOMETIMES the stars align and a team of overachieving underdogs beat their favored counterparts to post an unlikely victory.

This is what happened when perennial whipping boys Blackwater Elite surprised this conference’s surprise team NLEX Road Warriors with a shock, 107-106, decision in the 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup. Blackwater leaned on a pair of unwanted heroes in Roi Sumang and import Henry Walker. Sumang scored a career-high 32 points.

Walker had 29 points, 15 rebounds

and six assists. The Elite are unbeaten since Walker arrived.

Despite a stellar collegiate career Sumang dropped all the way down to the third round before being picked 26th overall

by GlobalPort in the 2015 PBA Draft. The Batang Pier didn’t have any use for him and he was lucky to be picked up by Blackwater.

Walker is the consummate basketball journeyman. He played in 14 other professional basketball teams all over the world – including Alaska and NLEX – before ending up at Blackwater.

These two unwanted heroes showed that they’ve got game

as they led the Elite to an unlikely victory.

Sumang set a milestone of sorts as he drilled 5-of-10 three pointers to finish with 32 markers and become the first player drafted in the third round to score the most number of points since Peter June Simon tallied 42 points against the Air21 Express.

The Elite seems to have the number of the Road Warriors.

They’ve won all three encounters against NLEX this season.

With the win Blackwater (2 wins, 3 losses) climbed to 8th place ahead of the Phoenix Petroleum Fuelmasters (2-4), the Globalport

Batang Pier (1-1), the Alaska Aces (0-4) and Kia Picanto (0-6).

Leading the standings are the unbeaten Star Hotshots (30). Trailing them are the Meralco Bolts (5-1), Barangay Ginebra San Miguel (3-1), NLEX (5-2), the San Miguel Beermen (2-1), TNT Katropa (2-1) and the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (2-2) Sumang and Walker will not lead the Elite to a PBA championship any time soon. But sometimes, when the ball bounces just right and their opponents are not watching out carefully, they can lead Blackwater past any other PBA team on any given night.

Blackwater Elite gunner Roi Sumang (12) fires another threepointer over the blocking hands of NLEX Road Warriors defender Kevin Alas (6) even as Road Warriors coach Yeng Guiao watches.

PBA photo