Our Sports Hall of Famers

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It may come as a surprise to this Instagram generation familiar with the accomplishments of Manny Pacquiao, Hidilyn Diaz, EJ Obiena and Carlos Yulo that once upon a time, during their grandparents' and even their parents' lifetimes, the terms "Filipino" and "sports champs" were very rarely used in the same sentence.

Once in a generation, there might have been a Flash Elorde or a Eugene Torre or a Paeng Nepomuceno who dazzled with their prowess, but they were flashes-in-the-pan, so to speak -- rare occurrences. Thus, it's no surprise that in the long history of sports, only ten Filipinos so far have been recognized as Hall of Famers in their respective arenas. Our Iloilo-based contributing writer Vicente Salas introduces the "Filipino Sports Greats and Hall of Famers," a slim list that will soon expand.

Nearer to the present, Fil-Am small businesses, other than the usual karinderya, hardly made a ripple even in the Fil-Am community beyond their neighborhoods. Today, Fil-Am entrepreneurs like Raibyn Cabiling of San Diego have established a presence in both mainstream and social media, peddling such products as t-shirts, headwear and an innovative "barongorak" that invokes Filipino culture. PF Correspondent Anthony Maddela reports.

The itch to travel is universal but does it have to be done alone? PF contributing writer Ian Layugan dissects the different facets of traveling solo, and presents words of caution and the challenge of daring.

What does it take to be surrogate mother/caregiver/mentor to a chess prodigy? Lotis Key, once a star in Philippine movies and theater, found herself assuming that role and wrote about it. Read Again "A Traveling Fool." http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/a-traveling-fool

His name no longer rings a bell so PF Correspondent Myles A. Garcia reintroduced him to a new audience. Read Again "Before Elorde and Pacquiao, There Was Luis Logan" on a boxing hero that should not be forgotten. http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/before-elorde-and-pacquiao-there-was-luis-logan

Always a comfort food, here's Sizzling Bangus Sisig for the Happy Home Cook: http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/the-happy-home-cook-sizzling-bangus-sisig

[Video of the Week] The Fight Over Manila's Last Forests: Masungi Watershed

El Rey Del Knockout and Reimagined Tinikling

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As we await another Pacquiao fight on November 22, allow us to regale you with the little-known story of a Spanish-Filipino boxer who was the world welterweight champ in the 1920s-1930s and whose winning record was only broken by Manny Pacquiao in 2013.

Luis Logan, “El Rey del Knockout,” was that rare breed of boxer who didn't have to fight his way out of poverty. He was heir to an international perfume business; the world-famous "Tabu" was the family product. That Luis chose to be a professional pugilist makes for a riveting story that our regular writer Myles A. Garcia painstakingly unearthed. "Before Elorde and Pacquiao, There was Luis Logan" indeed.

Another fascinating historical piece this week is Penelope V. Flores' "Gemelli Carreri, An Italian in Manila 1696," about the first travel writer who wrote about his one-month visit to Las Islas Filipinas and introduced the islands to the world.

Back to the present, Daniel Griffith, a Filipino American, writes about his three-month eye-opening, life-changing immersion in the Philippines and poses a challenge to his co-millennials to learn more about their parents' homeland. Daniel is part of the Kaya Collaborative, which coordinates immersion trips.

A tribute to the late Fernando "Jerry" Barican, well-known youth leader, businessman and once presidential spokesman, comes from his bosom friend, Nelson Navarro, who witnessed the ups and downs of Jerry's life. 

My blog is about the process of whittling down one’s life to the bare essentials: Rightsizing.

For our Videos of the Week, we bring you three amusing ways the national folk dance, the Tinikling, has evolved.

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Gemma Nemenzo

Editor, Positively Filipino