MANILA, Philippines – Entering his final playing year for the Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws, Ron Dennison probably never envisioned two things happening: how his season would start and how it would end.

A month before the UAAP Season 80 even tipped off, FEU’s defensive stalwart already made headlines as he took a major part in a game-ending pre-season brawl in Davao with players from Season 79 champion De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers. In various videos of the incident, Dennison could be seen throwing punches on star guards Ricci Rivero and Kib Montalbo before the non-bearing game was called off.

As fate – or coincidence – would have it, FEU and La Salle would end up squaring off again in the first game of the new season, and Dennison appeared to have turned over a new leaf, helping up fallen Archers after fouls and generally playing cleanly.

However, the most glaring difference he made was not his off-court behavior, but rather his performance on it. Known for years as primarily a low-key but reliable defender, Dennison suddenly showcased his offensive repertoire. Opponents’ scouting reports were thrown out the window as the 6-foot forward burst out with hard drives and pinpoint shooting from beyond the arc. Unfortunately for him and rookie coach Olsen Racela, this vast offensive improvement didn’t translate to early first-round victories, as they fell as far back as 6th in the team standings on the back of multiple heart-wrenchingly close losses.

But Dennison pushed on, proving that his first round outing was no fluke. However, FEU kept falling at the last possible moments, which was by no means his fault. Thankfully for the team, they finally came through at their very last game, sinking Adamson University Soaring Falcons and eliminating the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons from Final 4 contention in the process.

With newfound momentum and a clean slate in the playoffs, the Tamaraws shocked the UAAP world by blowing out the Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) Blue Eagles, 80-67. Although Ateneo was still reeling off its first loss against La Salle, no team had previously defeated them this season, much less by double-digits. In that crucial game, Dennison once again led the pack with 17 points and other contributions across the board.

Unfortunately, when it mattered most, he ran out of gas. FEU ultimately lost their knockout match against Ateneo in overtime, ending their Cinderella run. The Tamaraws were a shot clock away from the Finals before Dennison ate a pump fake and a game-tying three from the Blue Eagles’ Isaac Go.

Even someone as tough as Ron Dennison couldn’t help but break down in tears with the way he ended his UAAP career. Game after game, the Tamaraws just came up short, despite Dennison giving everything he had. However, in his time of sorrow, he was immediately approached by no less than Tab Baldwin, one of the game’s most decorated and respected coaches. According to Dennison, the Blue Eagles’ head coach told him that he had a bright future ahead.

After all the controversy that surrounded him in the beginning of the season, he ended it in the arms of a world-renowned coach who has earned his respect. Despite the mistakes that dragged him down, he made up for them and then some.

From zero to hero, that is the Ron Dennison story. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – The Victory Sports-UST Golden Tigresses simply had no answer for Tamara Kmezic as the Iriga City Oragons halted their month-long losing skid with a 25-19, 25-21, 25-20 victory in the 2017 Philippine Superliga Grand Prix at the Arena in San Juan Thursday, November 23.

With the Oragons down 16-18 in the third set, Kmezic unloaded 3 straight hits to give Iriga, which trailed by 7-12 earlier in the set, a 19-18 advantage.

The Tigresses then committed back-to-back errors before Kmezic scored another 2 points to push the Oragons’ lead to 5, 24-19. Another UST error sealed Iriga’s first win since October 24.

Kmezic fired 20 points, built on 17 kills, 2 aces and a block, for Iriga, which ended its 4-game skid to improve to 2-4 for 7th place.

“Matagal tagal din, apat na sunod sunod e. sabi ko nga sa kanila, importanteng manalo tayo ngayon para sa ranking, para hindi naman namin makalaban yung number 1 kasi baka bugbugin kami,” said Iriga coach Parley Tupaz.

(It has been a long time since we won. We suffered four straight losses. I told the players that it is important to win today for us to go up in the rankings and possibly not face the number 1 team. We would probably get beaten up if that happens.)

Janeca Lana added 9 points for the Oragons while Sam Miyagawa chipped in 7. Joyce Sta. Rita and Katherine Villegas combined for 10 markers.

The Tigresses closed a 10-point gap in the second set to just 3 points, 20-23, behind a 9-2 spurt but ran out of steamSL as Villegas and Shyrra Cabriana delivered the finishing blows for the Oragons.

Carla Sandoval had her best game in the tournament with a 14-point outing but it went for naught as the Tigresses absorbed their 6th loss in as many outings. Dim Pacres added 11 for UST. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – The Pinoy football firmament is exploding with the news that the English Premier League, Spain's La Liga, and the UEFA Champions League will now be carried on ABS-CBN S+A, a free channel. Previously these properties were only available on BeIN Sports, a trio of HD sports channel that shows mostly football, and is available on Sky Cable for P500 a month.

Now anyone with a TV or ABS-CBN TV Plus can enjoy the best club football on the planet, live. A schedule of 17 top European club matches starting Friday, December 1 was released on Thursday, including Arsenal versus Man Utd on December 3, Bayern Munich vs Paris Saint Germain 3 days later, and two colossal derbies on December 23, Real Madrid vs Barcelona, and Arsenal against Liverpool. All but one of the matches, Spurs vs Stoke on Saturday, December 9, is being shown live. This will go on until the UEFA Champions League final in the middle of 2018. See the schedule here. 

There are plenty of questions that Pinoy football fans seem to have about this development, and we will try to address them here.

Who is bringing this to the Philippines and why?

It appears that Bernard Sumayao is a prime mover in this sudden shift to the Beautiful Game. Sumayao is a Filipino media professional from La Salle who has been living in Thailand for over 30 years. He chairs a company called Triple CH Holdings and has been connected with an outfit called Media Resource Management Co. Ltd.

A big chunk of his work has apparently been involved in football.

In Thursday's press conference he said he had been handling the English Premier League and its broadcasting and sponsorship in the kingdom for the last 14 years. Sumayao says he has also helped grow Thailand's thriving domestic league.

“14 years ago we were in a stadium with 200 fans,' recounted Sumayao. “Now the league us worth 12 Billion baht and the teams are worth 1 billion baht each, or about US$30 million.”

Clearly, Mr. Sumayao has ambition.

“My dream is to make football closer in popularity to basketball,” he declared. Later on he said “I came back here because I am a man on a mission.”

“This will be a renaissance of football,” he continued. “This is just our first step. Expect more from us in the coming months.”

Sumayao and ABS-CBN Integrated Sports head Dino Laurena candidly confessed that the content is being given to the broadcasting giant for free.

“This is like a gift, it's not a major investment for us,” said Laurena,” who also said “we need to make a larger commitment to football so that it's not a niche sport. That's essential to its viability.”

“This is not just for business, it's personal,” said Sumayao.

 What else is being planned?

Apart from the matches, Sumayao says there will be magazine shows, highlight shows, and viewing events in public places. He also said that the “localization” of the broadcast to tailor the Philippine market is something they must do down the line. This has been crucial in Thailand, where the Premier League is popular but few fans speak English.

“We need activations. We have lots of future plans going forward,” added Sumayao.

Sumayao says the broadcast is just an “appetizer.” There will be plenty else going on outside of the TV screen. Sumayao also wants to boost grassroots football here by supporting high school and collegiate football.

According to Sumayao 3 academies of prominent English clubs are looking to bring their expertise in developing young footballers to the Philippines. He named one, Leicester City. The unheralded Foxes were the shock champs of the Premiership in the 2015-2016 season. They are owned by a Thai travel retail company, the King Power International Group, and the club chairman is Thai magnate Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha.

Sumayao also mentioned setting up a player agency and helping young Pinoy talent hone their skills in leagues abroad.

So should I cut my BeIN Sports subscription?

Personally, I would not. It seems that BeIN is giving ABS-CBN the free-to-air rights but is keeping the cable rights. S+A will only air these matches on their SD channel, not on their HD channel.

I am terribly spoiled by HD. For me it's the only way to watch sports, or really anything. I almost cannot bear to watch football on SD anymore and I gather many of you feel the same.

We were also told on Thursday, November 23, that there will be no replays of matches on S+A. BeIN typically airs Champions League live on an ungodly hour, then replays the matches during the day, often first thing in the morning. With BeIN you can wake up, news blackout yourself by staying away from social media, and watch your favorite Champions League team play as if it was a live match.

BeIN also has more matches and more leagues. The Qatar-based channel also shows France's Ligue 1, and the UEFA Europa League, the international club competition that sits below the Champions League. There is also Major League Soccer, the Argentinian League, and now, Australia's Hyundai A-League. You also get the Turkish League now, if you must not miss those fiesty Galatasaray vs Fenerbahce derbies. There are also plenty of excellent magazine shows like the FIFA Football Show, plus preview and highlights show.

(In case you're wondering, the German Bundesliga, Dutch Eredivisie, and top Asian leagues like the AFC Cup and AFC Champions League are aired on Fox Sports.)

BeIN is a football junkie's Nirvana that has devastated my already limited social life for the past three or four years. Things won't be changing soon.

But if you don't have access to cable, or cannot or will not fork over the 500 bucks a month for BeIN, then what S+A is offering is a godsend. It's more than enough world-class football for most.

But what about the local league, the Philippines Football League? And the Azkals?

There was no announcement of any partnership between ABS-CBN and the PFL nor the national team. But conspicuously present at the press conference in ABS CBN's ELJ building were PFF General Secretary Edwin Gastanes, PFL CEO Lazarus Xavier, and Azkals manager Dan Palami. All were welcomed to the stage for the picture-taking that concluded the press con along with Sumayao and Sorrakrit Lathitham of the Demeter Corporation.

It is also noteworthy to mention that ABS-CBN broadcasted the Azkals last AFC Asian Cup qualifier against Nepal.

The Philippines Football League currently does not have a broadcast partner and distributes its matches via livestreaming.

Interesting set of facts. It's as if a giant neon hashtag #areyouthinkingwhatimthinking was floating around the room.

How does all of this come together?

This new broadcast deal is one piece in an interesting puzzle. Let's review.

The best European leagues will now viewable by millions, nay, tens of millions of Filipinos on free TV from now until June. That could spur interest in the game.

From February to May, UAAP football will be aired on S+A as well. That will help. February is also likely the beginning of the second season of the PFL. At around that time we will have one, maybe two Filipino teams in the AFC Cup.

In late March, the Azkals, with a win or draw against Tajikistan OR a draw or Nepal win in the other match, qualify for the AFC Asian Cup final stage for the first time.

In April our Women's national team will participate in the final stage of the AFC Asian Cup for women.

In mid-June the FIFA World Cup will be played in Russia. S+A will air every match live. The Philippines, like the rest of the world, will catch World Cup fever like any other nation.

2018 is also a Suzuki Cup year, and there is talk of a reformatted competition being played during FIFA dates. That in theory means a stronger Philippine team that could go deep.

On January 5, 2019 the AFC Asian Cup final stage will begin in the UAE, hopefully we will be there.

Later on in 2019 the Philippines hosts the SEA Games, and our U22 (or U23, I hear they are still discussing the cut-off year), national team will have a big home field advantage. Might we get a first-ever SEA Games medal in men's football?

“My dream is to see a Thailand-Philippines SEA Games gold medal match in 2019,” says Sumayao.

Are the planets aligning for another Philippine football revolution? Perhaps. Lets hope all the pieces fall into place for the good of the game.

Meanwhile, starting next month, get ready to spend more time in that sofa. Some pretty awesome football is coming your way.

Follow Bob on Twitter @PassionateFanPH.

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Exactly ten days after the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers ended their season at a Final 4 era-worst 1-13 win-loss slate, news broke that embattled head coach Boy Sablan has stepped down from his position along with his entire staff.

As expected, fans of the disgraced basketball program took to social media to express their delight at the news, straight from the school’s official fan page.

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Fans openly expressing their thoughts are nothing new in sports, but when players start doing it, they’ll more than likely hit the press.

Such was the case with former Tigers Mario “Embons” Bonleon and Renzo Subido, who weren’t exactly subtle with their tweets in the immediate aftermath of Sablan’s exit from UST.

Bonleon fired off the first shots and Subido followed soon after:

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="tl" dir="ltr">Thank you Lord makakapasok na ulit ako sa basketball court ng Qpav ngayon thursday haha I&#39;m so happy right now. </p>&mdash; bons (@embonsbonleon) <a href="https://twitter.com/embonsbonleon/status/932952522905415680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 21, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> {/source}

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Can&#39;t wait to play for my Alma Mater! Let&#39;s do this! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OneforUST?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OneforUST</a> <a href="https://t.co/zFQHA5FYUT">pic.twitter.com/zFQHA5FYUT</a></p>&mdash; renzosubido (@RenzoSubido) <a href="https://twitter.com/RenzoSubido/status/932962445039038469?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 21, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> {/source}

People last heard of the pair when they both announced their plans to sit out Season 80, with Bonleon going into more specific details. In a previous report by Rappler, Bonleon revealed that the reason why he got “burnout” from UST was Sablan’s initial plans for him.

"I was lost my passion because, well, it’s okay for me if they will use someone who’s really better like Kiefer [Ravena] or Jeron [Teng]," he said. "It’s okay if they won’t use me if guys like them are my teammates. But if they’re going to use someone else just because they have the money then, no."

Per the report, ever since Boy Sablan took the place of Bong De La Cruz as UST’s head coach, Bonleon explained his playing time was cut from 16—20 minutes per game to just 8-10 minutes.

He then went on to rip Sablan more. "Coach Boy lacks experience. The assistant coaches are the ones who take over our practices. There is something wrong with the system."

Subido, meanwhile, just pointed to his own frustrations as his reason.

{source} 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="und" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoUSTe?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GoUSTe</a> <a href="https://t.co/EJLAUGWNJn">pic.twitter.com/EJLAUGWNJn</a></p>&mdash; renzosubido (@RenzoSubido) <a href="https://twitter.com/RenzoSubido/status/860140569233825794?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> {/source} 

With Sablan gone, it’s now more than likely that these two gunners are suiting up anew for the “black-gold, black-white.”

Your move, Pido Jarencio. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – The Cignal HD Spikers vented their ire from their previous loss with a 25-19, 22-25, 25-15, 25-17 win over the Sta. Lucia Lady Realtors in the 2017 Philippine Superliga Grand Prix at the Arena in San Juan Thursday, November 23.

Cignal, which surrendered to the F2 Logistics in straight sets last Tuesday, November 21, had four of its players finishing in double figures to tally its 3rd win in 7 outings.

Leading 11-9 in the 4th set, the HD Spikers pulled away for good off a 13-5 run for 24-14 advantage. The Lady Realtors scored 3 straight points before Honey Royce Tubino delivered a kill to secure the victory.

Tubino paced Cignal, which played without injured star Jovelyn Gonzaga, with a team-high 15 points while Alexis Mathews made her presence felt with 14 markers.

Rachel Anne Daquis and Beth Carey chipped in 13 and 11 points, respectively, in the win while Chie Saet accounted for 25 of the HD Spikers’ 32 excellent sets.

"’Yung skill nandoon na eh. Ang motivation na ginawa ko lalo na nawala si Jovelyn, sabi ko sa kanila, kailangan magstep up, 'yung kakulangan ni Jovelyn (Gonzaga), kailangan mapunan natin. Nandoon 'yung galing e, kumbaga kulang lang sa strive," said Cignal coach George Pascua.

(The skills are already there. The motivation that I did since Jovelyn was not here, I told them that they needed to step up and fill Jovelyn’s role. They are already good players, they just needed to strive.)

The Lady Realtors capitalized on Cignal’s error-plagued second set to even things up but lacked the firepower in the following set as the HD Spikers zoomed into a 23-13 lead behind a 13-4 blitz.

Bohdana Anisova was the lone Sta. Lucia player to reach double figures with 17 points. Pam Lastimosa added 9 for the Lady Realtors while Ria Sante and Mar-Jana Phillips had 8 points apiece.

Sta. Lucia remained at 8th place with a 1-5 card, a win ahead of the winless Victoria Sports-UST Golden Tigresses. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Manny Pacquiao threw down the gauntlet to Conor McGregor – and took a dig at Floyd Mayweather – as he promised to give the mixed martial arts star a "real boxing match".

McGregor lost a megabucks fight in August against the unbeaten Mayweather, who defeated Pacquiao in their disappointing 'Fight of the Century' in 2015.

"Happy Thanksgiving! Stay fit my friend. #realboxingmatch #2018 @thenotoriousmma," Pacquiao posted on Twitter and Instagram, using McGregor's social media handle.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Happy Thanksgiving <a href="https://twitter.com/TheNotoriousMMA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheNotoriousMMA</a> Stay fit my friend. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/realboxingmatch?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#realboxingmatch</a> #2018 <a href="https://t.co/3ze20fZgpe">pic.twitter.com/3ze20fZgpe</a></p>&mdash; Manny Pacquiao (@mannypacquiao) <a href="https://twitter.com/mannypacquiao/status/933684224749481984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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There was no immediate reaction from McGregor on social media, and Pacquiao's media team told AFP Friday that there were "no negotiations yet" about a McGregor match.

Pacquiao, who turns 39 in three weeks, lost his World Boxing Organization welterweight title to Australian former teacher Jeff Horn in July, having come out of retirement in 2016 to take the belt from American Jessie Vargas.

McGregor has not fought in mixed martial arts or boxing since losing to Mayweather by 10th-round technical knockout in their much-hyped bout in Las Vegas in August.

Pacquiao's "#realboxingmatch" reference appears to be a swipe at Mayweather, who beat the Filipino by unanimous decision in 2015 in the richest fight in boxing history.

Pacquiao, who fought with a shoulder injury that later required surgery, has insisted he beat Mayweather, saying he "didn't do nothing. He was always moving outside".

Mayweather retired with a record of 50-0 after the McGregor bout. – Rappler.com

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – A South African appeals court increased paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius' sentence for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp to 13 years and five months on Friday, November 24.

The Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein more than doubled his original sentence of six years after the state appealed that it was unduly lenient.

Prosecutors argued earlier this month that Oscar Pistorius failed to show genuine remorse after killing his girlfriend.

"One of the essential ingredients of a balanced sentence is that it must reflect the seriousness of the offence," Andrea Johnson, of the National Prosecution Authority, told the court.

The Paralympic athlete shot dead Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine's Day in 2013 when he fired four times through the door of his bedroom toilet.

He pleaded not guilty at his trial in 2014 and has always denied that he killed Steenkamp in a rage, saying he mistook her for a burglar. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – From battling for the last semifinals berth, the La Salle Green Hills Greenies exceeded expectations as they dethroned the Mapua University Red Robins for the NCAA Season 93 juniors’ basketball title.

The Greenies came back from a deficit as big as 14 points to eke out a 75-74 win in a do-or-die Game 3 in the finals at the Arena in San Juan Friday, November 24.

Finals Most Valuable Player Joel Cagulangan secured both of his free throws for a 75-74 Greenies lead with 37.3 seconds remaining.

LSGH’s Joshua David was fouled following a 24-second violation on Mapua but missed both of his freebies, which paved the way for a potential Red Robins game winner.

{source} 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">From surviving a playoff for the last semis berth to nipping the Mapua Red Robins in a do-or-die Game 3 in the finals, 75-74, the La Salle Greenhills Greenies are the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NCAASeason93?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NCAASeason93</a> jrs. champs. <a href="https://twitter.com/RapplerSports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RapplerSports</a> <br> <br>(Last play for a potential Mapua game winner.) <a href="https://t.co/K17IFGQdUX">pic.twitter.com/K17IFGQdUX</a></p>&mdash; delfin dioquino (@dioquinodelfin) <a href="https://twitter.com/dioquinodelfin/status/933980891533033472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 24, 2017</a></blockquote>
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David compensated for his late-game blunder by tipping the ball out of bounds with 4 ticks left as Mike Enriquez bricked an attempt from the top of the key for Mapua. 

“After the buzzer sounded, it seemed like I was in a dream until everyone was hugging me and kakaiba. You cannot describe this in any words, just thankful that we’re part of this,” said Greenies coach Marvin Bienvenida. 

The Scores

CSB-LSGH (75) – David 27, Cagulangan 19, Lao 8, Fornilos 6, Marcos 5, Lepalam 4, Mosqueda 3, Perez 3, Morales 0, Pedrosa 0, Sangco 0.

MAPUA (74) – Escamis 21, Lacap 13, Gozum 12, Bonifacio 10, Enriquez 8, Ramos 6, Garcia 4, Jabel 0, Dennison 0, Arches 0, Sarias 0.

Quarter Scores: 15-19, 32-44, 53-56, 75-74. 

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Gilas Pilipinas fended off a late Japan scare to start its FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers campaign on a high note with a 77-71 win at the Komazawa Olympic Park in Tokyo Friday, November 24.

The Filipinos led by 10 points midway the payoff period before Japan used a 9-2 run, highlighted by Yuki Togashi’s two triples, to make things interesting, 69-72.

But Jayson Castro-William, who paced Gilas with 20 points, knocked down a triple and Roger Pogoy scored off the break to give Pilipinas a comfortable 77-69 cushion with 27 seconds left in the game.

Castro-William also had 7 rebounds, 6 assists and a steal while Andray Blatche did not look rusty in his Gilas return after finishing with 13 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocks.

Newcomer Matthew Wright made his presence felt with 12 markers while veteran Gabe Norwood chipped in 10 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals.

Gilas took a 14-point lead early in the second quarter following Kiefer Ravena’s free throws, 24-10, before Japan trimmed the deficit to 5 points, 24-49, off a 14-5 run powered by Makoto Hiejima’s 7 points.

The Akatsuki Five opened the third quarter with a blistering 12-0 blitz, capped by a Togashi triple, to take the lead, 40-37, but Gilas quickly got back on its feet with its own 10-3 run, 53-46.

An Andray Blatche buzzer-beating triple gave Pilipinas a 59-55 advantage heading into the final period.

Makoto Hiejima paced the Japanese with 20 points and 5 rebounds but was quiet in the crucial stretches of the game. Ira Brown had 10 markers and 15 caroms for the home team.

Gilas will return home to face Chinese-Taipei on Monday, November 27, at the Araneta Coliseum.

Scores:

Pilipinas (77): Castro 20, Blatche 13, Wright 12, Norwood 10, Fajardo 6, Abueva, Aguilar 5, Pogoy 5, Ravena 1, Alas 0, Rosario 0

Japan (71): Hiejima 20, Brown 10, Tanaka 10, Togashi 8, Baba 7, Harimoto 7, Shinoyama 4, Takeuchi 3, Ota 2

Quarter scores: 18-10, 37-28, 63-55, 77-71

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Women's National Softball team, the PH Blu Girls, will compete in the 11th Asian Women's Softball Championship from November 28 to December 5 in Taichung City, Taiwan, bringing them a step closer to qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. 

"[A medal] is not a possibility, but a promise," head coach Randy Dizer said.

The tournament will see the Philppines go up against 12 teams, including Asian softball giants Japan (world number 1), China (world number 6), and Chinese Taipei (world number 9), which will be broken down to two divisions. 

In 2016, the International Olympic Committee officially announced that softball will be added in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. However, only 6 countries in the world can qualify, and Japan has an automatic slot for being the host country. 

The team that will be sent to Taiwan is a mix of the best local players in the country, with former Ateneo de Manila University player Cheska Altomonte captaining the young 33-woman squad. 

The UAAP stars in the lineup are Dione Macasu from the University of the Philippines; Arianne Vallestero, Mia Macapagal, Shaira Damasing, and Lovely Arago from National University; Celestine Palma, Cristy Roa, and Mary Ann Antolihao from Season 79 1st runner-up University of Santo Tomas; and Queeny Sabobo, Lorna Adorable, Riezel Calumbres, Annalie Benjamen, Angelie Ursabia, Florabele Pabiania, and Riflayca Basa from 7-peat UAAP champions Adamson University. 

There will be 16 Filipino-Americans included in the team, with some of them returning to the Philippine team after their previous international stints earlier this year. These include Chelsea Suitos, Gabrielle Rodas, Jaqueline Pascual, Kayla Joyce, Skylynne Ellazar, Kailey Hill, Alyssa Pinto, Kailee Cuico, Reese Guevarra, Hailey Decker, Gabrielle Maurice, Garie Blando, Dani Gilmore, Taryn Atlee, Chaela Galapo, and Abigail Millete. 

Great Chances

The Philippines has long been known as the "Southeast Asia's Queens of Softball," having bagged the Southeast Asian Games gold medal in 1979, 2005, 2007, 2011, and 2015. 

In July 2017, the Blu Girls had a successful run to their World Cup of Softball XII and Canada Cup International Softball Championship campaign.

The Philippines – currently ranked world number 17 – managed to defeat world number 3 Canada twice, world number 4 Australia, and Asian number 3 Chinese Taipei in the competitions. 

The success from these two championships was a trailblazing moment for the Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines' (ASAPHIL) softball program, as this further raised their hopes of qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. 

Long winding road

ASAPHIL was already eyeing the 2020 Olympics when it revitalized its women's national softball program in 2014. This spearheaded the recruitment of Filipino-American players that aimed to fortify the team and raised the standards of Philippine softball. 

"Before that (2014), there were already inquiries of the national team so what we did was they submitted some biodatas, videos, and from there, we tried to look at their records there. We went to the States. We stayed there for 3 months. PSC helped us fund the trip. So from there, it was the start of the Fil-Am program," said Dizer. 

After 3 years of finetuning the program up to the present, the pathway to the 2020 Olympics is still clouded with uncertainty as the Blu Girls have to battle out through every major competition starting on their upcoming tournament in Taiwan.

The 11th Asian Softball Championship will serve as the qualifiers to the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, and the Women's World Softball Championships that will be held in Tokyo, Japan.

The top 5 teams of this championship will advance to next year's regional competition, while the top 3 are immediately catapulted to the world championships. 

The winner of the 2018 world championships in Tokyo will earn the first of the 5 open slot to the Olympics. 

With only 3 major chances to reach the end goal, Jean Lhuillier, the president of ASAPHIL as well as the President and CEO of the PJ Lhuillier Group of Companies, believes that it is still a tough challenge, but the Blu Girls are ready to match up with the best teams in the world starting on Tuesday, November 28. 

"I'm very excited for this tournament that is coming up next week. The team is ready and we're looking to show what Philippine softball is all about," said Lhuillier.

"Pilipino tayo, palaban! (We are Filipinos, all fighters!) Even our Fil-Ams have that Filipino blood," said Dizer. "They are all here to play for the flag."

The opening game of the PH Blu Girls will be against Japan, the top team in the world. – Rappler.com

BARCELONA, Spain – Lionel Messi insisted he was getting better with age after receiving the European Golden Shoe award for the fourth time on Friday, November 24.

The 30-year-old Argentine won the prize for being the top scorer in Europe's leading leagues last season after netting 37 times for Barcelona.

"I have always said that I don't consider myself to be a striker, but I have been lucky enough to always score goals and win individual prizes," the five-time Ballon d'Or winner said after being handed the trophy at a ceremony in Barcelona.

"As I have progressed off the field, I think I have also done so on the pitch.

"I have improved and added things to my game and I enjoy myself more and more every day as a player."

Messi won the trophy ahead of Bas Dost, who scored 34 goals for Sporting Lisbon last season, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, on target 31 times for Borussia Dortmund.

Previously the winner in 2010, 2012 and 2013, Messi equals Cristiano Ronaldo in claiming a fourth Golden Shoe. The Real Madrid superstar was the winner in 2008, 2011, 2014 and 2015.

Messi succeeds his Barcelona team-mate Luis Suarez, the 2016 winner who handed over the trophy on Friday.

Messi is on top of the scorers' charts in La Liga again this season, with 12 goals in 12 games. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Four players were ejected in a bench-clearing altercation that marred the University of the East Lady Warriors’ finals-clinching 69-62 win over the UST Growling Tigresses during the do-or-die semifinals of the UAAP Season 80 women’s basketball semifinals at the Mall of Asia Arena Saturday, November 25.

The game was virtually decided as UE led by 6 points with 4 seconds left in the game, 68-62, when Sai Larosa pushed and punched Love Sto. Domingo during an inbound play. Players from both sides hurried to the scene and had to be separated by security personnel and the coaching staff.

Larosa was slapped a disqualifying foul for the punch while Lady Warriors Marieny Requiron, Erica Ebeza and Princess Pedregosa were also thrown out for leaving the bench.

UST, which led by 14 points in the first half, finished the third quarter with a 9-point lead, 56-47, but failed to find the bottom of the net in the payoff period as the Lady Warriors went on an 11-0 run, capped by back-to-back triples from Christine Cortizano and Joyce Francisco, to take a 58-56 lead.

Kikay Gandalla broke the scoring drought for the Tigresses with a trey with 4:15 left in the clock, 59-58, but UE went on another 10-2 blitz to prevent itself from squandering a twice-to-beat advantage after losing to UST last Wednesday, November 22.

"Doon ko nakita ‘yung five years na pinaghirapan namin. Sabi ko sa kanila nga noong natalo kami against UST noong Game 1 namin, sabi ko, masakit pero kailangan nating bumangon, isipin natin ‘yung goal natin kasi limang taon na tayo magkakasama tayo dito, hindi tayo pwedeng paatras, kailangan ang Warriors puro pasulong," said UE head coach Aileen Lebornio.

(This game is the culmination of our five years of hard work. I told the players after we lost Game 1 against UST that it was difficult but we had to get back. That we had to think of our goal, we have been together for five years and we cannot take a step back because as Warriors, we always have to move forward.)

Sto. Domingo paced UE with 18 points, 12 rebounds and 3 steals while Eunique Chan backstopped with 16 markers, 11 caroms, 2 assists and a steal.

Francisco added 14 points, highlighted by a clutch bucket that put the Lady Warriors up 66-61 with 23.9 seconds left, 6 rebounds and 3 assists.

UST coach Haydee Ong lamented on the officiating of the game, noting on the free throw disparity that saw the Lady Warriors take 35 free throws against the Tigresses' 19. 

"May mga fouls na hinahatak na yung mga player ko, hinahawakan yung jersey and they were not calling pero sa amin manipis. Kumbaga sa ano, kinontrol ng referee 'yung game," said Ong. 

(There were instances where my players were being hacked, their jerseys were being held but the referees were not calling any fouls. The referees controlled the game.)

Anjel Anies paced the Tigresses with 16 points but was scoreless in the second half while Larosa had 16 markers, 8 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals.

The Lady Warriors will face the undefeated National University Lady Bulldogs in the best-of-three championship series starting Wednesday, November 29, at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Scores:

UE (69) – Sto. Domingo 18, Chan 16, Francisco 14, Tacula 8, Cortizano 7, Ramos 4, Requiron 2, Gayacao 0, Antonio 0, Nama 0.

UST (62) – Anies 16, Larosa 16, Gandalla 9, Angeles 9, Rivera 7, Peñaflor 3, Jerez 3, Sanggalang 2, Isanan 2, Aujero 2, Portillo 0, Manuel 0, Magat 0, Valera 0.

Quarter Scores: 10-16, 27-35, 47-56, 69-62.

MANILA, Philippines – The Ateneo Blue Eagles win over the De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers, 76-70, on Saturday, November 25 at the Mall of Asia Arena. 

The Blue Eagles lead the best-of-three finals series 1-0 in the UAAP Season 80 men's basketball finals. 

Isaac Go sealed the win for Ateneo, completing a three-point play off a foul by DLSU's Kib Montalbo, 76-70, less than 10 ticks to go.

Ateneo held a slim lead entering the 4th quarter (60-58), but the Blue Eagles punctuated an early 9-1 run in the final frame. Aljun Melecio and Ben Mbala answered back with a combined 7-0 run after the timeout to get within 3 points (69-66). Melecio's jumper almost tied the game at 71-all with 2:10 left in the game, but it was downgraded to a 2-pointer. Thirdy Ravena then made a putback off Asistio's miss that saw Ateneo lead by 3 points as the final frame reached its 2-minute mark (73-70). 

It was a heated start to the match as both teams fought for the lead, but Ateneo's balanced team effort surpassed that of La Salle to end the first quarter up by double digits (26-14).

The Green Archers challenged the leading Blue Eagles further in the second quarter with more consistent presence of Ben Mbala. The Green Archers were able to cut the lead to as much at two points as they were able to break the Blue Eagles' defense from the 3-point range. (36-34).

However, both teams drowned in fouls in the second period as Mbala and Chibueze Ikeh picked up double technical fouls for taunting with 4:17 left in the second period. Aljun Melecio was also called for an unsportsmanlike foul in the 2 minute mark of the quarter. Matt Nieto also went down on the ground with a bleeding forehead for pulling off a jumper to block Mbala and was called for a blocking foul. 

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Matt Nieto left bloodied after the accidental hit. (Warning: Graphic Image) <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UAAPSeason80?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UAAPSeason80</a> <a href="https://t.co/7RW8Ley8IM">pic.twitter.com/7RW8Ley8IM</a></p>&mdash; ABS-CBN Sports (@abscbnsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/abscbnsports/status/934350206656585728?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 25, 2017</a></blockquote>
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The Blue Eagles can wrap up the UAAP men's basketball Season 80 title in game 2 Wednesday, November 29, 4 pm at the Araneta Coliseum. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines –Third time’s the charm for Filipino cage fighter Rolando Dy as he scored his first Octagon victory in the preliminary card of UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs Gastelum, Saturday, November 25, in Shanghai, China.

After three five-minute rounds, Dy was able to get the nod from the judges, besting Wuliji Buren via unanimous decision. Dy fell to his knees crying, as Bruce Buffer read the official decision to his favor.

Dy immediately displayed his striking prowess as he dropped Wuliji with a left with under five minutes remaining in the first round.

Buren was able to score a total of four takedowns but the Filipino always found a way to escape his opponent’s offense unharmed. During the closing moments of the fight, Dy showed urgency as he landed a few clean strikes to the Chinese fighter.

Incredible comeback

A few days before the fight, Dy revealed that he was already cut by the UFC, but he was given a second chance when he was asked to fight Wuliji, on a two-week notice.

Dy stressed that he’s in a must-win situation, as a victory is his “ticket” to remain in the premier MMA league’s roster. Going into the fight, Dy knew that he was at a disadvantage because he had little time to prepare following the late notice. “I call this a suicide mission” Dy said, ““I really need to win this fight because they’ve already cut me before [this].”

The 26-year-old made his UFC debut against Octagon veteran Alex Caceres, in Singapore, last June. But Dy was unsuccessful, as he got TKO’d due to an eye injury that he suffered during the second round.

Dy then had a chance at redemption, when he faced Japanese Teruto Ishihara, in UFC Saitama. However, the fighter from Parañaque City was bested by the hometown fighter via unanimous decision after three rounds.

Year 2017 has not been kind to Filipino MMA fans as it witnessed the fall of UFC flyweight Jenel Lausa and former ONE lightweight champion Eduard Folayang. With the win, ‘Dy Incredible’ achieved his goal of presenting Filipino fight with a combo-breaker. “My goal is to win and to end the year with a win for the Pinoys.” – Rappler.com 

MANILA, Philippines – After the crucial 76-70 finals win by the Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) Blue Eagles against defending champion De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers, the Nieto twins gave new meaning to the saying "blood is thicker than water."

Everyone expected a heated contest between the two rival schools on Saturday night, November 25, the first game of their finals rematch.

However, late in the second quarter, things turned a tad too heated when eagle-eyed shooter Matt Nieto took an accidental elbow above his left eye by the imposing two-time MVP Ben Mbala during a routine spin in the post.

Nieto went down hard and started spurting blood from the point of impact. He had to be taken to the locker room for immediate treatment.

From the sidelines, brother Mike saw everything. As his twin bro Matt crashed down and bled on the floor, Mike could be seen jumping repeatedly in protest of the blocking foul called against him. Little did La Salle know that Mike was already plotting to get even with them.

No punches nor elbows were thrown back from the Eagles. Instead, Mike completely took over in the second half, scoring all 11 of his points (7 in the 4th with a series of drives and post plays). The damage wasn't eye-popping, but it was done nonetheless.

Ateneo was able to keep their rivals' "Mayhem" at bay and hold on for the huge 1-0 advantage in the best-of-3 series. Incidentally, Matt twinned his twin's total with 11 points of his own.

After the game, Mike voiced his thoughts on the incident that fueled his game.

"Nung nasiko [si Matt]niBen, kung makikita 'nyo sa video, I threw the towel on the floor kasi parang nasaktan din ako nung natamaan si Matt,” he said. "Kasi I don't really want to see my brother down. Especially when I saw the blood falling down from his eyes, parang lalo akong na-motivate eh.”

(When Ben elbowed Matt, if you can see in the video, I threw the towel on the floor because I felt that I also got hurt when Matt got hit. Because I don't really want to see my brother down. Especially when I saw the blood falling down from his eyes, it's like I got motivated even more.)

"I don't wanna retaliate by hurting La Salle physically by punching them – no," he added. "I just wanted to win the game."

Matt, meanwhile, was just all business. "I really wanted to get [Ben's] spin because I'm gonna sacrifice even my face, even my body just to get that possession. That possession will win us the game," he said.

Most importantly, both Nietos and Mbala came to a consensus that the elbow was unintentional. "It's part of basketball," said the Cameroonian big man, who was held to a UAAP career-low 8 points on just 3/7 shooting. "I had the ball, I spinned. [Matt] was late on the rotation on the double [team], that’s why he got hit. I didn't intend to hit him or hurt him."

With Ateneo on the verge of avenging last year's campaign with a championship win of their own, expect that the physicality would only trend up on Wednesday's Game 2 at the Araneta Coliseum. Hopefully though, no more blood would be shed in the process. – Rappler.com

HOUSTON, USA – Survivor Series has come and gone, and in many ways it’s upheld a lot of things we now know about big PPV weekends in the WWE.

The perfunctory NXT Takeover event was tight and better than the main WWE event – and while Survivor Series itself is solid, many McMahonisms and "main show"-isms stop it from really reaching legendary status. We're also not lacking in post-Big Four main roster callups. Throw those all together and we do actually have ourselves your usual Big Four PPV.

Because so many things have happened, it's time to distill the big news of the week (not just the weekend, because RAW and SmackDown Live after the show are as much a part of the festivities as they are the respective fallout). I've put together a list of the winners and losers of the last Big Four PPV of the year.

Winner: Velveteen Dream

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Where at first fans weren't really sure what to make of Velveteen Dream, nee Patrick Clark of Tough Enough fame, the powers behind NXT were trusting enough to give him the spot of the guy who takes Aleister Black to the limit. Not even guys like Hideo Itami got to do that against Black, and it's impressive for a guy who was still feeling out his character when he got here. It just shows that Dream has a lot of upside, especially considering he's only been 3 years in the business.

Loser: NXT Women’s Division

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Despite Asuka being an impressive dominant force in the year and a half before she got called up to RAW, her reign didn't really make for compelling storylines for the rest of the division. Women would just come in, challenge her, and lose because they weren't ready. What the scene needed was someone who could easily interact with everyone else and make them compelling. The scene needed a heel champion, which Asuka wasn't always, so it should've made some sense here that Nikki Cross could have taken it.

Instead, they decided to give it to the half-baked Ember Moon, which really feels like a title reign that was promised earlier instead of a win that felt right for the current situation. Let's see how they write it, but I don't have a lot of faith in her here.

Winner: Andrade 'Cien' Almas

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Okay, so we partly have Drew McIntyre's torn biceps to blame, but this is an interesting outcome that at least salvages one of NXT's failing big investments. Sure, Almas' association with Zelina Vega was already doing the job, but without a clear direction, there wasn't far to go. Almas is flourishing in his new role and his controversial character could open up all sorts of possibilities for the NXT Championship scene, especially now that the rest of the stories were sorted with WarGames.

Winner: Everyone involved in WarGames

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It wasn't a high bar to clear, considering it's just a matter of creating the most carnage as possible. But the right people won in the Undisputed ERA to continue their momentum.

Loser: Everyone watching WarGames

The WWE production team clearly couldn’t keep up with the carnage happening in their setup, and the director wasn't always sure where to point his broadcast. Looks like there was a lack of close coordination in putting this match together on the production side of the game, and the viewers paid for it.

Winner: The Shield and the New Day

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The Shield has successfully made up for Roman Reigns' sick leave from TLC with a barn-burning 6-man tag match against the New Day, and both teams have cemented their legends as two of the company's elite units.

Loser: Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn

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Speaking of elite units, what started out so promising ended up horribly derailed. In what seems to be the result of legitimate backstage heat with at least Sami Zayn, the most compelling storyline on SmackDown is now more of a punchline after the WWE Best Friends' crusade lost steam. Instead of being a big factor of Team SmackDown's loss at the main event of Survivor Series, they end up being a tiny part of it that doesn't even greatly influence the match.

Loser: Alexa Bliss

At this point, she’s just waiting to lose the title to Asuka, eventually.

Winner: AJ Styles and Brock Lesnar

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Regardless of whose idea it was, and regardless of the inevitable Lesnar victory, pairing up Styles and Lesnar was the best move they made for this match. Styles can do no wrong as the man who cannot have a bad match, and it showed in the way Lesnar was game to take everything Styles wanted to do and make him look good.

That look in both their eyes as Lesnar was limping to the back showed that Styles could very well be a Paul Heyman guy if all parties involved wanted to. And I want them to do it—check this speech out here:

Loser: Jinder Mahal

The only problem with this match now is that Mahal absolutely needed to interfere, especially to keep the story they started going. It doesn't matter that people don't like him. In fact, that's a big reason why he should've come out to cause a loss anyway. If that happened, Styles wouldn't have had to lose so clean to Lesnar, and it would intensify their feud further. Instead, it looked like Mahal had no real interest in both the WWE Championship and his original target when he challenged for the champion vs. champion match. WWE has already failed him by not giving him the best run he could manage, and they've failed him again by not making him look relevant.

Loser: Team SmackDown

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Look, we all knew Team RAW was going to win the whole thing the moment SmackDown threw the first shot and put the show #UnderSiege. Hell, it was made even more clear when Triple H declared himself the 5th man of the team. But did SmackDown and its up-and-coming stars really have to look bad in the loss?

The Survivor Series main event could've been used as a huge stepping stone for the big SmackDown call-ups of the year in Shinsuke Nakamura and Bobby Roode. Instead, they were treated as the rookies they are by having them eliminated first and second, respectively.

John Cena and Randy Orton could have gone out first, Cena especially because he was a last-minute filler addition to stack the card, and Orton because he had no real backing in the match. SmackDown was going to lose, but they could’ve done so much more and have Nakamura and Roode come into this week’s episode with so much momentum heading into new programs.

Once again, they dropped the ball—expect them to put the blame on the guys themselves for failing to get over.

Winner?: Jason Jordan

I put in a question mark there because it still depends on what exactly they're going to do with him, but it seems like they already have plans for him going from the negative reactions he's been getting. The best way to deal with it is really to turn him evil and let him flourish in that role. If he doesn’t, that’s when the experiment will have failed.

Losers: Paige and all the NXT women who were called up

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It was one thing for Paige to come back (although in a way that could've been a lot better, for sure). Okay, so she brought two of the more inexperienced NXT women with her, but they can learn from her. But for 3 more ladies to arrive on SmackDown the next night in almost the exact same way? This is lazy writing for sure, and if how they got in was already lazy, it doesn't leave me with a lot of hope in how they’ll be handled from here.

Ruby Riot, Liv Morgan, and Sarah Logan are already out of character debuting as upstart heels, and I don't expect either trio to last too long. Let's see how they write this next week.

*****

Do you listen to podcasts? Would you want to listen to a local podcast about pro wrestling? If the answers to those questions – especially that last one – are yes, then you should check out the cleverly-named Smark Gilas-Pilipinas Podcast, featuring PWR General Manager Stan Sy, wrestling writer and Wrestling God Romeo Moran, and all-around multimedia person and former voice of PWR Raf Camus!

On their latest episode, the boys are joined by FOX’s Wrestling Gods co-host Nicole to discuss Survivor Series weekend! Listen to it here! – Rappler.com

SHANGHAI, China – Her toothy smile and "Supermom" nickname may not seem very intimidating, but that changes when Chinese mixed martial artist Miao Jie steps into the cage.

The 30-year-old single mother is 2-0 in Asia's ONE Championship professional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion, setting back-to-back women's records by blitzing her opponents to win in just 49 and then 45 seconds.

A title bout remains a distant dream but Miao – who fights to support the three-year-old son she calls "Peanut" -- is among a growing number of Chinese fighters, fuelling predictions of an MMA explosion in the birthplace of martial arts.

A former judoka in China's state sports system, Miao switched to MMA, the formidable multi-discipline amalgam of grappling and striking typified by Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) stars such as Ireland's Conor McGregor.

But outside the ring the Shanghai native is a dedicated parent to son Li Muyuan, arranging her five daily hours of training around his sleep and meals.

"It's like how some people listen to motivational music. My motivation is my son. Without my son, I feel like I can't do anything."

Accurate estimates of Chinese MMA adherents remain elusive, but gyms and provincial-level competitions are proliferating, and with a pool of state-nurtured athletes like Miao, China is the sport's next frontier.

'Long way to grow' 

The sport will take a major step into the country on Saturday when ONE's rival UFC – the world's richest MMA promotion – holds its first Fight Night in mainland China.

It will include bouts featuring foreign and Chinese combatants such as Li "The Leech" Jingliang, a bruiser with a 13-4 record.

"It's a great honor for me. I have worked hard and me, my team, friends and family are proud, and we want to make China proud," the 29-year-old said on Thursday.

The sport got a PR boost in China this year when a Chinese MMA fighter challenged a traditional martial artist, taking him apart in seconds.

A viral video of the white-washing sparked soul-searching over the efficacy of classic martial arts in a real fight, but also underscored the belief that a mix of old and new could fuel a massive Chinese market.

"You're going to start seeing some of that 'China, the birthplace of martial arts' manifested in the octagon (ring) soon because it's rising here," said UFC Asia-Pacific Vice President Kevin Chang.

"A lot of that is still untapped. We still have a long way to grow."

Singapore-based ONE has dozens of Chinese MMA fighters under contract, recruited from gyms across the country, and plans four China events next year.

It could stage up to 25 cards a year in China soon, said ONE chief executive Victor Cui, who relocated to Shanghai a year ago.

"Here, whether you are five years old, whether you are a 105-year-old grandmother – you know martial arts, you know Bruce Lee, you know Jackie Chan, you know Jet Li. So our ability to reach and connect with a fanbase is a lot easier," Cui said.

Challenges remain, including safety concerns highlighted when 21-year-old Chinese ONE prospect Yang Jianbing died in 2015 from heart failure blamed on the rigors of dropping weight for a fight.

And doping cast a shadow over Saturday's UFC card when MMA legend Anderson Silva was scrubbed from the main event over a positive drug test.

Chang said that underlined the UFC's "strong" anti-doping stance.

Other concerns include whether MMA's violence and trash-talk will repel Chinese viewers accustomed to humble stars.

Chinese Conor McGregor?

Chang says a Chinese champion – "The Leech" is highly rated – would be a game-changer.

"If over the next 10 years we get a Chinese fighter with the charisma and skill of McGregor, that changes everything overnight. And that could be in three years, it could be much sooner," he said.

"Supermom" hopes it'll be her.

"Hyperactive" at school, Miao was steered into the state judo system.

The 163cm (5ft 3in) Miao switched in 2010 to Brazilian jiu-jitsu, MMA's dominant style, before jumping this year into MMA.

It don't go well initially.

A "blow-out" loss in an April provincial-level competition, her first bout, left her with a fractured vertebrae. She was bed-ridden for four months.

"Everything became clear to me then. I wanted to take on my greatest challenge and fight in MMA," said Miao, who debuted for ONE in Shanghai in September and fought again last month in Yangon.

Spurred by "Jia You!" ("Go for it!") voice recordings from "Peanut," she pounced on her Australian opponent in Yangon, forcing her to tap out with a painful armhold.

"My next goal is a championship belt. I was really encouraged by my two contests and feel that I am improving each time," she said. – Rappler.com 

MANILA, Philippines – The SMART Gilas Pilipinas will be facing Chinese Taipei at home on Monday, November 27, 7:30 pm, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. 

Philippines – ranked 5th in Asia and 30th in the world – is coming off a 77-71 win over Japan Friday, November 24, while Chinese Taipei – ranked 10th in Asia and 57th in the world – is aiming to bounce back after suffering a 38-point beatdown from Australia, 66-104.

Tune into Rappler Sports on Twitter for live updates of the game.

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MANILA, Philippines – National triathletes Nikko Huelgas and August Benedicto took their talents to greater heights as they bagged a 1-2 finish in the Top Asian Elite category of the Foremost Ironman 70.3 Thailand 2017 competition on Sunday, November 26, in Phuket, Thailand. 

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Huelgas finished with a time of 4:25:20 to place 30th out 1,035 other athletes overall. Benedicto immediately followed after Huelgas, clocking 4:26:20 and ranking 31st.

Sam Burns of Thailand took 3rd place in the category with a time of 4:31:10. 

Earlier this year, Huelgas brought home a gold medal from the 29th Southeast Asian Games in the men's triathlon event, while Benedicto held champion titles in the Century Tuna Ironman 70.3 Subic Asian Elite 2017 and 2 x Ironman 70.3 Vietnam Asian Elite 2017. – Rappler.com 

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – At a trial for youngsters at Rio de Janeiro's Vasco de Gama football club, Vanessa Dias pushed through the bushes to glimpse her 12-year-old son Caua, nervously hoping that he'd just taken his first step to the big time.

About 200 other children aged nine to 17 were taking part in the trial on a basic football pitch in northern Rio under the watch of scouts from the club, one of Brazil's biggest.

Parents weren't allowed in, but some climbed a hill through undergrowth to try to see the field anyway.

"I'm ready to make any sacrifice. I'm unemployed and sometimes I don't have enough to pay for transport, but I always get by with a loan here and there," Dias, 33, said.

Her son actually supports Vasco's big rivals Flamengo, but he's trying to play a bigger game now than mere fandom: getting a shot at becoming a future star himself.

Becoming the next Neymar is the dream of many in a country mad about football and with no shortage of talented youngsters from poor backgrounds hungry for a chance.

But there's nothing easy about getting there.

Vasco's head scout Uerner Leonardo Passos said even in this first set of trials, "only 10 percent of the boys will pass before going to a new series of tests at the club headquarters."

Trials last three days and take place every month, divided into age groups where children get an opportunity to show off their skills in 20-minute games.

Ronaldo Faria, a Vasco scout, has a good idea of what he's looking for: his brother is World Cup winner Romario, the club's biggest ever find.

"The secret of Brazilian football is the favelas, with kids playing on the streets and on rough pitches," he said, referring to the hard-scrabble, often violent neighborhoods where many Brazilians grow up with little more than dreams of getting out.

Eyes peeled

Vasco puts a big emphasis on scouring those favelas for talent.

"Our scouts often go to the favelas and they keep a network of contacts who will tell them if there's a kid showing potential," said Luiz Rangel, from Vasco's talent spotting department.

Jacy Oliveira, who lives in Rio's Piedade neighborhood, brought four local boys along to the trial.

"Many good players don't even get a chance for a trial because they don't have the money for transport," said Oliveira, who uses his own money in the hope of finding a new talent to boost his own scouting career.

"For now, I've had nothing but expenses but I'm sure that I'll come across a shining star," he said.

Among the boys playing that day, just one really stood out for Ronaldo Faria – a nine-year-old called Felipe who dribbled past older and bigger opponents with ease.

His twin brother Fernando, however, looked so nervous that he was having trouble performing at all.

"Don't be afraid," one of the trial organizers told him. "Just be normal, play as if you were in the street with your brother."

'Pre-programmed'

What scouts want to see are players with talent but able to play in a team without too much individualism. They have another problem, though, and that's the lack of freedom in children already trying to copy adult systems.

"The children are pre-programmed, there are fewer and fewer who play in a spontaneous way," Luiz Rangel said.

"What we're looking for is a series of characteristics: ease with the ball, field position, the way they communicate with the other players on the team. Everything has an influence."

Caio Rodrigues, 15, said it was important not to show off.

"If you try and stand out you end up making a mistake. They want us to play simply and to pass the ball," he said.

Pedro Henrique, 13, has been watching his heroes, Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar and Manchester United and France midfielder Paul Pogba, on video for inspiration.

"When I am big I want to play with them, with Neymar, on the national team," the boy said shyly. – Rappler.com