Sports Eye
My big mistake
By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.
DESPITE the threat of Typhoon Pedring lashing the country with heavy rains and strong winds and causing flooding, the organizers of the much-publicized LBC Ronda Pilipinas bikathon decided to push through with the 12-day road saga on September 24 with much fanfare at Cagayan de Oro City. Our official Pangasinan contingents were divided into two teams, the East and Central-West Pangasinan with six riders in each squad. Both are now strutting their wares against the best in the archipelago hoping to bring pride to the province and pocket the one million peso grand prize at stake in team competition and another one million bucks for the individual winner.
So far, after three of four days battling the roads of Mindanao and the Visayas, our two local bets 2006 Padyak Pinoy champ Santy Barnachea of Umingan and 2003 Tour Pilipinas titlist Arnel Quirimit of Pozorrubio are in contention for the title, occupying the fourth and fifth spot in the overall classification, respectively, the same position for our two provincial squads for the team honor. Hopefully their wish to become the victors anew will become a reality. We’ll just pray for their success because their triumph is a victory for us Pangasinenses. This is the sport where we excel in unlike basketball and other ball games that never-ever earned a national crown for the province.
I was supposed to officiate in this bikathon, considered as the “richest” in Philippine cycling history, as ‘chief judge at the finish’ but I declined the offer due to my commitment to the 2011 PRISAA-UCAAP basketball league as its appointed commissioner. But after three weeks of skirmishes I was surprised to learn that I had been set up by a few who and ganged up on me to cause my sudden exit from the league. The conspiracy of sort to have me removed was led by one of the team coaches, the league’s bursar and a fellow whom I had trusted. They accused me of ineffectiveness as commissioner. They merely used the two complaints lodged by Colegio de Dagupan head coach PJ Samson against the NABRO referee, not me, as basis for their allegations against me. Vexed and piqued by their unfair allegations, without thinking twice, I decided to resign. I submitted my letter of irrevocable resignation to Atty. Gonzalo Duque, president of the league. I did not hesitate to resign to prove to the clique of three that I was in for a professional undertaking and not for the money (as they are wont to believe). Unlike them, I can live comfortably without this job, being a U.S. government pensioner.
I had not anticipated this mess spawned by jealousy and intrigue, especially because I trusted this one fellow whom I had treated like a brother since the time I met him. Unknown to me then, he had deceived me all along. I suspect it had to do something with money. I really regret knowing him as much I regret having accepted the job because it also cost me an offer of an assignment from the sport that I love so much, cycling. It’s the sport that enabled me to bring multiple national laurels to this beloved province, and for which I received numerous awards from the late Gov. Aguedo F. Agbayani, an achievement I believe that none of the ‘trio’ had accomplished for themselves to this day. If I had not accepted the league’s commissioner’s post, I could have been one of the officials of the national Tour event where I was asked to lend my 32 years experience in road racing…and perhaps even had the opportunity to guide our bikers on how they can win in multi-stage racing, my specialty. But all that has come to naught now.
I admit I committed a big mistake in the choice of assignments, and in the choice of friends. But I’m just human.
Next week I will provide space here for the text messages that I received from the three coaches of the league who asked me to print them. Luckily, I was able to keep them. Abangan.
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: And Jesus said “The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” 1 Timothy 6:10
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