Kat Tolentino’s strong net defense streered Choco Mucho to a 27-29, 25-20, 25-19, 17-25, 15-12 win over Galeries Tower in the 2024-25 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference at the FilOil EcoOil Arena in San Juan on Thursday, November 14.Tolentino posted a game-high 27 points anchored on 20 kills and seven denials to deliver the Flying Titans’ first win, earning her the Player of the Game honors. According to Choco Mucho coach Dante Alinsunurin, Tolentino has consistently been one of their dependable players, which is why he has been relying on the star opposite spiker, who is recovering her best form despite her auditory condition.“Whenever Kat is in the lineup, I have complete trust in her. I was really saddened when she got sick, but I told her this is the time for her to come back and fully recover,” said Alinsunurin about Tolentino, who eluded multiple games in the first conference and played minimally in the Reinforced Conference due to health concerns.“It feels tiring but I’m okay. It’s nice to be back with the team and help them,” said Tolentino, who also submitted 10 digs.“I think we just have to stick to the system and trust each other. Prove that we’re a fighting team, that we’re fighting up to the last point. So that’s what happened,” she added.

Creamline prevailed in the highly anticipated rematch of last season’s conference, trouncing Akari in straight sets, 26-24, 25-17, 25-16, to secure its second consecutive victory in the 2024-25 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference at the Candon City Arena on Saturday, November 23.The Cool Smashers were boosted by the return of three-time MVP Tots Carlos, who made her first appearance since missing the import-laden event and Invitational Conference due to a knee injury.Creamline took a 16-10 lead in the third set thanks to a 7-2 run led by Jema Galanza and Bernadeth Pons, who each had three and two points.Bea de Leon would help the Cool Smashers gain ground, and Pau Soriano, a substitute, would kill block Faith Nisperos to complete the victory.

Petro Gazz overpowered Akari in straight sets, 28-26, 29-27, 25-18, to claim its third win in the 2024-25 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference on Thursday, December 5, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.Brooke van Sickle and Myla Pablo joined forces to edge the Chargers with the Filipino-American hitter hammering 19 points built on 15 attacks including 13 excellent digs, while Pablo added 15 markers off 13 kills, a block, and an ace.Van Sickle gave captain Remy Palma credit for the victory, stating that her leadership helped Petro Gazz get through the tense first few sets and win the straight-setter.“Coming off our rest, we haven’t played in a while so to be able to come out and stay focused in those tight matches was awesome,” said Van Sickle.“I’m super proud of everyone, I feel like Rem [Palma] did a very good job collecting all the girls while we’re on the court and just to slow us down because I feel like at times we we’re like ‘ahhh’ and she’s like ‘calm down, it’s okay, take a breath and just play our volleyball,’” added the reigning conference MVP.

The Oklahoma City Thunder started and finished strong to secure a 120-109 victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 5 of their best-of-seven finals series on Tuesday, June 17 (PH time).

Iloilo prospect Charles Daniel Turla snapped the athletics boys’ elementary javelin throw record with a stunning 60.26 meter throw in his Palarong Pambansa debut.In just his third throw, the incoming Grade 7 athlete easily smashed the event’s eight-year-old record of 57.50 meter set by Jerick Mendoza of CALABARZON.Turla will try to build on his hot streak as he competes next in the boys elementary shot put competition on Saturday, July 13.

Asia Paraase from Central Visayas delivered another spectacular performance after securing her second gold medal at the Palarong Pambansa 2024 on Sunday, July 14, at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) oval.Paraase clinched victory in the secondary girls’ 1,500 meter run, setting a new personal best of 4 minutes and 50 seconds, surpassing her previous record of 4:56 set at the Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association (CVIRAA) 2024.The 17-year-old student athlete from Lapu-Lapu City first made headlines last Thursday, July 11, when she earned the inaugural gold medal of the ongoing games by topping the 3,000-meter run.“I am very happy that I succeeded in this Palarong Pambansa and won the 1,500 meter run,” said Paraase told Manila Times in an interview after the competition.The young athlete was overwhelmed with joy, discovering at the last minute that her entire family had come to watch her final race.“I am happy that they are happy. I was able to achieve my goal,” said the incoming Grade 12 student at Pajo National High School.Meanwhile, Paraase also revealed that universities in the National Capital Region have offered her scholarships, but she plans to finish her senior high in Lapu-Lapu before deciding on her next step.

Philippine gymnastics’ golden boy Carlos Yulo was predicted to win medals at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.The International Gymnast Online - an e-zine and kwon as the leading source of gymnastic news wrote in their July 21 preview of the men’s apparatuses that Yulo will land a gold medal in the men’s floor exercises over defending Olympic champion Artem Dolgopyat of Israel.

Akari’s import Oly Okaro had a performance to remember as she paced her team to a five-set comeback against the Choco Mucho as they went 2-0 to start the 2024 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City on Tuesday, July 23.The Chargers remain undefeated in Pool B after pulling off the reverse sweep against the Flying Titans, 18-25, 16-25, 25-21, 25-23, 15-13.The 28-year-old American opposite spiker recorded an explosive performance in the game, matching the season’s scoring record of 38 points built off 33 attacks, three aces, and two blocks. Okaro tied Creamline’s Tots Carlos in the season-opening All-Filipino Conference last March with the fifth-highest scoring output in the league’s seven year-history.

Philippine gymnastics golden boy Carlos Edriel Yulo has booked a ticket to three Olympic events on his turf - all-around, floor exercise, and vault during the men’s artistic gymnastics qualification held at the Bercy Arena in Paris.The 24-year-old Yulo placed second in  the floor exercise with a score of 14.766, then sixth in the vault with a mark of 14.683 and performed in all events to get the 9th spot for the all-around with a score 83.631.On the other hand, Caloy failed to advance in the parallel bars - an apparatus where he won silver in the 2021 World Championships and gold in the 2022 Asian Championship. He scored 14.533 after his routine with a difficulty of 6.000. In the rings he scored 13.000, and 13.466 in the horizontal bar but not enough to advance to the finals. He also failed to advance in the pommel horse - the one they called his “kryptonite” with the score of 13.066.The single events target was to make it to top eight, and be part of the overall top 24 gymnasts for the all-around event. As Yulo qualified for three finals events, he surpassed his 2020 Olympics stint with one finals appearance in the vault. This time, he has three chances to get a medal for the men’s artistics gymnastics.Carlos Edriel will have his first shot at gold on July 31 at 11:30 p.m. PHT, with the individual all-around event. The floor exercise final will commence on August 3 at 9:30 PM PHT, while the vault final is set on August 4 at 10:24 PM PHT.

Team USA dominated the South Sudan Bright Stars 103-86 in the group phase of the Olympics men’s basketball on Wednesday, July 31 at the Pierre Mauro Stadium in Paris, France.There was no repeat of their pre-Olympic game where South Sudan almost made an upset against the Americans as the game ended at 101-100. Team USA had to overcome a 16-point deficit, with LeBron James scoring the game winning lay-up.The Americans showed their might this time as they started the game with a 6-0 run and never looked back until the end to secure their quarterfinals ticket in the Paris Games.Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo led the Americans in scoring with 18 points, 14 of which came from the first half of play. He also grabbed seven rebounds, swatted two shots, dished off one assist and tallied one steal.Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Anthony Edwards, Devin Booker and Derick While all finished in double figures in scoring too.It was also the return of Jayson Tatum in the starting line-up after not playing a single minute in their opening game against Serbia.On the other hand, Noni Omot led South Sudan with 24 points, two rebounds, two assists, and two steals while Carlik Jones added 18 markers, seven dimes, three boards and one steal.Team USA will still be facing Puerto Rico on August 3 to cap off their group stage assignment while the Bright Stars will face Serbia in a must win situation to advance to the next round.

Philippine Sports Commission president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino is still optimistic that the Philippine delegation in the Paris Olympics can still bring home a medal.Tolentino said, “Full speed ahead. The campaign for medals, especially gold, is hot on track.”Even though the Philippine team suffered defeats after defeats, Tolentino is still hoping that they can still end the Paris Games campaign on a high note.Tolentino also said that even though the losses hurt, this is not yet the end of the journey.The PSC chief says he is also saddened by the boxing loss that Eumir Marcial suffered. Marcial is the one being eyed to bring home a medal but failed to do so. Despite that, Tolentino said that it’s not the end for him.“I know how painful it is for Eumir to bear the loss. We feel his disappointment and frustration, but it’s not the end for him.”Tolentino added that the light heavyweight division is not for Marcial as it is far from his original weight class in the middleweight division where he won bronze in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Aira Villegas gifts herself with the best possible present on her 29th birthday as she advances to the women’s 50kg quarterfinals in the Paris Olympics early Friday, August 2 (Manila time).The Filipina boxer stunned the No. 2 seeded Roumaysa Boualam of Algeria when she showcased her quick movement and counterpunching.Villegas repeatedly backed off her Algerian foe with her stinging left jabs and quick combinations, enabling her to get all of the five judges’ nod in the first round. While the next two frames were closer, it was Villegas’ clean blows that spelled the difference.It was the second straight unanimous decision win for Villegas, who has been impressive so far in her Olympic debut. She gave the Philippine boxing team a winning start in the Paris Olympics on Monday, July 29, with a victory over Yasmine Mouttaki of Morocco.The 29-year-old’s win set up a date with home bet and seventh seed Wassila Lkhadiri of France as they duel for a spot in the semifinals on Sunday, August 4 (Manila time).Villegas joins Tokyo silver medalists Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam among the Filipino boxers who remain in the medal contention. 

The host country France is heading back to the Olympics men’s basketball gold medal game after narrowly defeating Germany in their semi-final battle, 73-69.Germany started out strong to take a 10-point lead in the first canto of play but France tied the game heading to halftime. Les Bleus built a 13-point lead of its own with less than seven minutes in the fourth and final period. Germany cut the deficit into two in the final minute but France held on to the lead until the final buzzer.Guerschon Yabusele led France with 17 points. Victor Wembanyama had 11 points on 4-for-17 shooting, while Rudy Gobert went scoreless in just five minutes of action.Dennis Schröder scored a game-high 18 points for Germany and Franz Wagner chipped in with 10.France now awaits the winner of the USA-Serbia match-up to know whom they will face in the finals of the tournament.In France men’s basketball Olympic history, they have three silver medals in their bags - all three coming at the hands of Team USA and the latest was in 2020 Tokyo Olympics. This is the French’s 4th gold medal match appearance in Olympic basketball.This year's gold medal game will be held at 3:30 a.m on August 11, Sunday (PH time).Meanwhile, Germany will be battling for their first Olympic men’s basketball medal against the loser of the USA-Serbia match-up for the bronze medal at 5:00 p.m on August 10, Saturday (PH time).

Hopson knocked down the 4-pointer with 4.8 seconds remaining in the game to lift Converge FiberXers to a 96-95 squeaker against TNT Tropang Giga after trailing as much as 16 points in the game.The Converge import completed his heroics in the defensive end as he blocked the driving Rondae Hollis-Jefferson just before the final buzzer went off.Converge improved to 2-1 as they dealt TNT their first loss of the conference after three matches.The FiberXers were still down by three, 95-92, after Hollis-Jefferson knocked down the game’s last four free throws, including a pair with only 9.6 seconds left in the contest.Converge interim head coach Franco Atienza said that they intended to take the four-point shot in their final possession as they have someone who can shoot from that distance.True enough, Hopson made the historic game-winning shot after he got enough space to launch a shot off the screen given by Bryan Santos against Glenn Khobuntin.

Filipino sporting official Ramon "Tats" Suzara has been named the new president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation.This, as he is the newest official tasked with putting the name of the Philippines’ volleyball teams on the map.The countdown begins for the upcoming 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship that will take place in the Philippines. In order for the national volleyball teams to thrive on the world stage, Suzara has to implement the visions he has for the AVC. First on his agenda is to put volleyball as the Top 5 of popular sports in Asia especially that Philippines is one of the spectators in Volleyball National League (VNL) around the world followed by Thailand, according to Suzara.Purchasing land in Bangkok to convert it into AVC’s headquarters is also part of his mission.

Alas Pilipinas Men braces for tough challenges as they face strong adversaries in Pool A of the 2025 Fédération Internationale de Volleyball, or FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship.Host Philippines was grouped with Iran, Egypt, and Tunisia in the first round of the world championship following the culmination of the drawing lots on Saturday, September 14, at Solaire Grand Ballroom in Parañaque City.Italian coach Angiolino Frigoni recognized the big responsibility and big challenge for the No. 64 Alas Pilipinas in the international championship scheduled for next year.

The East Asia Super League (EASL) Home and Away launches its 2024-25 season, kicking off a thrilling double-header at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday, October 2.Two PBA basketball champions will banner the opening games with the reigning Commissioner’s Cup victors San Miguel Beermen will face Korean Basketball League finalist Suwon KT Sonicboom in the first game of the night, while PBA Philippine Cup winners Meralco Bolts will then take on Macau Black Bears.

San Miguel averted disaster after dispatching the Converge FiberXers in the toe-to-toe Game 5 of their quarterfinals match-up, 109-105, on Sunday night at the Ynares Center, Antipolo.June Mar Fajardo showed why he's an eight-time MVP by producing a monster double-double of 40 points and 24 rebounds to lead the Beermen in entering the semis of the PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup.Fajardo went 15-of-27 from the field and shot 10-of-12 from the free throw line to carry much of the load in SMB's triumph.Though having a lot of contributions, JMF said that they all step-up in their do-or-die victory.

Rain or Shine might be in a 1-3 hole right now in their PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup semifinals series against the defending champion TNT Tropang Giga but they will not go down without a fight.The Elasto Painters coach Yeng Guao said that they still feel good about their chances in their match-up and their perspective is still positive.