7/28/2019 Ten Most Famous Philippine Athlete
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first international male bowler ever to be inducted to the
prestigious International
Bowling Hall of Fame and Museum.
9. Mansueto Velasco. The Philippines has never had any
significant Olympicsuccess. Although there were gold medal harvests
in tae kwon do, wushu and
bowling, these were designated as exhibition events at the time
so the medals earneddid not count in the overall tally. Velasco
earned a silver for boxing during the 1996
Olympics where he lost a controversial bout in the finals. Since
then, Velasco has
been a regular fixture in Philippine television and movies as a
local comedian.
10.Manny Pacquiao. The world famous pugilist is also a recording
artist, an actor, abusinessman and a congressman in his native
country. Winning seven world
championships in seven weight divisions while beating the likes
of Eric Morales,
Miguel Cotto and Oscar de la Hoya propelled Pacquiao to
greatness. Some say a
match against the unbeaten Floyd Mayweather would cement his
legacy while others
say he has done more than enough to prove he is one of boxing's
all time greats.
11.Simeon G. Toribio (September 3, 1905 June 5, 1969) was a
Filipino athlete, whowon the bronze medal in the high jump at the
1932 Summer Olympics in Los
Angeles, United States. He represented the Philippines in three
consecutive Summer
Olympics, starting in 1928.[1][2]
In 1930, Toribio was awarded the Helms World Trophy for being
Asia's greatest
athlete. He became a lawyer and a congressman representing Bohol
province where
he later settled. Simeon Toribio, the pride of Zamboanga, was
considered the
"Filipino Field Athlete of the Half Century" and "Asia's Best
Athlete" for winning
gold medals in the high jump event in the Far Eastern Olympics
in 1921, 1923, 1927,1930 and 1934 and a bronze medal in the 1932
Los Angeles Olympics.[3]
According to author Jorge Afable, Toribio could have won the
gold medal, if not only
for the "call of nature". It was a grueling four-hour
competition to jump over the bar
raised at 6 feet and six inches high. Toribio, who once made the
jump, failed to
overcome it the second time because he was distressed by call of
nature. Before this,
Toribio narrowly missed the bronze in the 1928 Amsterdam
Games.
Toribio, who studied at Silliman University,[4] later became a
lawyer. In 1941, he was
elected to the House of Representatives of the Philippines,
representing the Second
District of Bohol, and serving until 1953.
12.Rosie Villarito is a Filipina track and field athlete. She
grabbed a silver medalin the womens javelin throw event during the
24th Southeast Asian Games held
in Thailand in 2007. Villarito is a former member of the
athletics team of the Far
Eastern University. She is also a Private in the the Philippine
Army.
