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Sports and Games: An Essential Part of Life

In this blog, we’ll talk about the different types of sports and games.

The general education of sports and games have come a long way from being designed as a way to introduce students to a healthier lifestyle to being used as a time for students to not only focus on their body and mind but also to have fun and participate in competitions. This way, various skills are being enhanced all at once such as athletic and interpersonal skills which helps a person become healthier physically, mentally, and socially.

Individual sports consist of sports where one can participate as an individual. This include track and field, swimming, gymnastics, cycling, figure skating, and more. This is important as it hones the individual’s skill in a particular sport. It also encourages more people to do sports activities seeing as it is something that one can do by themselves. One particular individual sport which became popular recently is weightlifting; a sport won by famed weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz in the Tokyo Olympics. 

In the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, she was the youngest among the competitors in the women’s 58-kg category and the first to vie for a medal in the sport since 1988. She was also the first Filipina to compete in weightlifting. Diaz obtained the first gold of the Philippines in the 2018 Asian Games and became the very first Filipino weightlifter, regardless of any gender, to win a gold medal in the Asian Games.

Dual sports consist of sport that are done by pairs. The pairs compete against each other in a 1 vs 1 setup. This include badminton, tennis, chess, and many more. Although some of the sports that fall into these category can fall into individual sports, it is important to remember that if it is put into a setup where one player competes against another player then it will be considered as dual sports. This type of sports encourages camaraderie and friendly competition among players as well as honing their skills. There are a number of famous Filipinos in this category but none so more worth mentioning than Eugene Torre.

Philippine grandmaster Eugene Torre has been a trailblazer for Asian chess for half a century, achieving a number of continental milestones including first grandmaster (1974), first to defeat a reigning world champion (Anatoly Karpov in 1976), and first to reach the Candidates stage of the World Championship (1982-1983). A member of the Philippine Olympiad team a record 23 times, Torre won three individual medals on board one (silver at Nice 1974 and bronze at Malta 1980 and Dubai 1986). He also won a bronze medal on board three at Baku 2016 at the age of 64.

Traditional games are games that are usually played in a particular community. It is usually introduced to children at a young age. Traditional games that are found all over the world include tag games, hide-and-seek, and more. In the Philippines, these games can be seen being played outside by children. Traditional Filipino games include sipa, moro-moro, tumbang preso, luksong tinik, and more. These games help develop a child’s motor and social skills.

Recreational games, not to be confused with traditional games, are games that can be introduced to a person at any time and are usually not linked to a particular community. These include playing video games, ice-breakers, and more. These are used primarily for fun and not for competition or honing of skills although competitive play has slowly taken the scene.

Sports and games are without a doubt fun, but it is also a way for people to come together and enhance their athletic and interpersonal skills. When people are involved in sports and games, they become healthier individuals and can therefore contribute more to society. That is why sports and games are an essential part of life because they help people become better versions of themselves thus becoming better citizens.

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A Review on the Performance of the Top 3 Sports Teams in the Philippines

Ranking the top three sports teams in the Philippines based on performance and consistency.

Sports is a popular hobby and form of competition in the Philippines. It integrates talent and teamwork. Coupled with a few controversies, it makes up for good entertainment for Filipinos. This paper examines the recent performances of the top 3 sports teams in the country, namely, Team Azkals (Football), Gilas Pilipinas (Basketball), and Dragon Warriors (Boat Racing) and ranks them according to these performances.

Team Azkals

Team Azkals is a household name in the Philippines made famous by their roster of not only talented but good-looking players. Back in 2019, the Philippine Azkals achieved history by defeating Tajikistan 2-1 to qualify for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, marking the country's first ever qualifying in the continental championship's 62-year history. Then, it won 3-0 in the second round of the combined 2022 World Cup and 2023 Asian Cup qualifiers, but it was not enough to please head coach Scott Cooper, who regarded the Azkals' performance as uneven. Cooper also mentioned that the Azkals showed discipline in their 2-0 loss to China, which contrasted with their performance against Guam.

Gilas Pilipinas

Gilas won its first two games in 2019, away in Japan and at home against Chinese Taipei, with Reyes still at the helm, before falling on the road to newcomer Australia in the first round of group stage matchups. Gilas then went on to finish last in the tournament in 2019, losing all of its preliminary round matches en route to their lowest result since hosting the event in 1978. Despite losing 76-83 against Serbia recently, the fresh-faced Gilas Pilipinas team made an impact on opponent head coach Igor Kokoskov, who praised the Filipinos' resiliency and teamwork for allowing them to come back from a 16-point second-half hole and almost pull off a major upset. The Gilas rallied from a 40-56 deficit to take the lead, 74-73, until Serbian behemoth Boban Marjanovic took control late to give the hosts the victory. Gilas Pilipinas has consistently won a handful of matches throughout the years.

Dragon Warriors

Dragon Warriors has consistently been making headlines due to their outstanding performance overseas. The Philippine Army Dragon Warriors took home a silver medal from the World Dragon Boat Racing Championships in 2019 after winning the small boat 200-meter Seniors Open event. They were ahead of schedule, but the Thai team was able to close the gap in the last 10 meters, allowing them to win the gold medal. Moreover, the Philippine Dragonboat Team took home another set of gold medals from a very competitive meet in China, only a week after winning two gold medals in a major race in Singapore. The Philippine Canoe-Kayak Dragonboat Federation PCKDF dominated the 500m and 250m small boat open categories in the renowned 2019 Beijing International Dragonboat Tournament, which featured China's best under-23 teams.

With this information in mind, Gilas Pilipinas takes the top spot as it has a lot of major wins not only in the country but abroad. Philippine Dragon Warriors takes second place as they are consistent with their performance though still has lesser awards than Gilas. In last place is Philippine Azkals who struggled in the first few years but is recently trying to redeem themselves with major wins.

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Southpaw (2015) Film Review

This film about boxing teaches its viewers about the importance of perspective.

The movie Southpaw is a film about Billy Hope, a successful American boxer who, after losing his wife, must now get his act together to fight for the custody of his daughter and be able to give her a better life. It teaches its viewers a bunch of valuable lessons about life.

One is to learn to listen. This is apparent early on in the film. All successful people did not succeed just by themselves. They had a bunch of people behind them that supported them and gave them advice. Billy had his friends and his wife. He would not be where he was if it was not for those people who told him what he needed to hear even if it was not what he wanted to hear. The movie reminds us that the people who love us know want what is best for us and sometimes, we need to listen to them and let them guide us.

“The more you get hit, the harder you fight.”

Second is to appreciate what you have. Be appreciative of what you have now because it can be gone in an instant. Billy had everything. He had money, fame, a successful career, a good family, and supportive friends. He did not appreciate what he had when he still had it. Because of one unfortunate event in his life and his negative reaction to it, he ended up losing everything.

Third is to continue fighting despite the challenges that life brings. Life is full of surprises and people are not always equipped or ready to tackle them but if there is one thing this movie taught me, it is that the good thing about being at rock bottom is that the only way to go is up.