Sports all over the world drew into a standstill for most parts of 2020 due to the pandemic, but it didn’t stop Filipino athletes from excelling in their game.
Golfers Yuka Saso and Bianca Pagdanganan, as well as Olympic-bound pole vaulter EJ Obiena and Carlos Yulo, were among those who had a breakthrough year on foreign soil as some tournaments still carried on despite the global health crisis.
Saso and Pagdanganan debuted in the pros when golf resumed play mid-year, earning a few titles to make their presence felt.
Saso bagged her first title in the NEC Karuizawa 72 championship in August, and then followed it up with the Notori Ladies Golf Tournament trophy two weeks later. In total, she earned ₱43.4 million in 14 appearances.
The 19-year-old member of the Philippine team who won gold in the 2018 Asian Games also showed she could be at par with the best of the world when she finished tied for 13th with six others in her first US Women’s Open in Houston, Texas, earning ₱4.6 million.
Pagdanganan, for her part, collected around P9.8 million total earnings as a rookie in the tour, highlighting her debut year with a third place finish in the LPGA Drive On Championship in Georgia.
Obiena, who has been training in Italy for the rescheduled 2021 Tokyo Olympics, was also able to join a few tournaments in Europe.
The 25-year-old collected six podium finishes, most notable with a bronze-medal finish in the elite Rome Diamond League in Italy last September behind world record holder Armand Duplantis of Sweden and Belgium’s Ben Broeders.
Like Obiena, Yulo has also been gearing up for the Olympics by sharing the No. 1 spot with Olympian Rayderley Zapata of Dominican Republic in December’s latest rankings in floor exercise released by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG).
He was also able to compete in the 2020 All-Japan Senior Gymnastics Championships in Takasaki, Japan last September where he finished bronze in vault.
Karateka James Delos Santos took advantage of online tournaments during the pandemic by joining and winning a total of 36 gold medals, becoming the world No. 1 e-kata player by the end of the year.
Golfers Yuka Saso and Bianca Pagdanganan, as well as Olympic-bound pole vaulter EJ Obiena and Carlos Yulo, were among those who had a breakthrough year on foreign soil as some tournaments still carried on despite the global health crisis.
Chess players also turned online for tournaments with two PH teams spearheaded by reigning world chess champion for the differently-abled Sander Severino finishing fifth and ninth in the 1st FIDE Online Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities.
Severino also bagged titles in two elite online tournaments.
Online chess boomed in the absence of over-the-board play. Chess enthusiasts and elite players alike took advantage of the dozens of local tournaments being hosted here and there, including a few by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines.
NBA’s bubble-type competition also became the guiding force in holding tournaments during the pandemic, with Chooks-To-Go and PBA getting clearance from the Inter-Agency Task Force to resume. Chooks-To-Go was able to host a 3x3 basketball tournament inside the Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba, Laguna, while PBA resumed its Philippine Cup in Clark, Pampanga.
The Philippine Football League also carried on despite the pandemic with a two-week tournament in Carmona, Cavite.