I HAVE come to witness personally “sporty” people who continue to play competitive basketball at the ripe age of 60 or even older.
In fact, I have played with – and against – them in various places such as the Philippine Military Institute gym in Manila on Sunday mornings, some of whom nearing age 70 with one hand shaking violently (probably signs of Parkinson’s disease) and the other dribbling the rock at the speed of a 33 1/3 rpm (musical) record.
A hypertensive Baby Boomer that I am, playing in regular tournaments for the “young once” is no longer an option although I still play fullcourt ball once every blue moon.
I recall having played against former Philippine Cultural College cager Johnny Chua, the 50-plus year-old dad of current Philippine Basketball Association youngster Justin Chua, who I have known since his high school days at Chiang Kai Shek College down to his five-year stay at the Ateneo de Manila University where he won a University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) title every year and now to the professional ranks.
Of course, the games for our age level are way, way slower. No one really beats Father Time or Mother Nature. Yet there are some “senior” citizens who are able to delay the aging process for having lived a Spartan life through the years.
One such person that continues to actively engage in sports is 67-year-old Angel Ngu, the newly-elected president of the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc.
Basketball, though, is not his favorite sport; soccer or football is.
Until now, the radiant-looking, black-haired Ngu plays soccer during his “free” time.
Ngu was smitten by soccer at age 10 while a student at Chiang Kai Shek College. By 14, he was already into competitive football.
“It was my dad who influenced me to take up football,” said the Manila-born Ngu, who once headed the Filipino-Chinese Amateur Athletic Federation from 2009-11. “My father also played football during his prime and I often tagged along and joined him in the games.”
Ngu’s fascination with soccer continued even after he matriculated at the University of the East in the mid-1960s for his tertiary studies. “I was a member of the school team and played my heart out every time we set foot on the football field and played against teams from other big schools.”
After college, Ngu decided to form the Min-U Football Club (Friends of Manila) – all for the love of football.
Together with his close friends, they would barnstorm around the country for friendly matches. They would also showcase their wares overseas. A favorite destination was Taiwan, where their age-group counterparts would welcome them with open arms.
In 1989, Ngu organized an international football tournament featuring athletes age 40 or older.
The inaugural competitions were held in Manila with teams from Taiwan, People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong and the host country.
Among his veteran teammates were soccer legends Anastacio Co and Bert Honasan, a brother of Senator Gregorio Honasan.
“I was so proud of the tournament’s success and more so because we were able to bring together teams from Taiwan and China at a time when the political atmosphere between the two countries was a bit frosty,” recalled Ngu.
The international tournament, which was called the Evergreen Cup, has since attracted teams from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Malaysia.
Ngu noted the revival of football in the Philippines when the Azkals entered our national conscience in the 2000s due to the presence of Filipino-foreigners with brute physique but matinee idol-like good looks on the team.
“The Azkals have brought back the enthusiasm that the Filipinos had shown for the sport during the 1960s and 1970s,” said Ngu.
Ngu is into his late 60s but until now, he still regularly plays the game of football.
Every Sunday, he and his friends troop to the Xavier School football field in Greenhills, San Juan City to pit skills against teams from their age group and even those from the younger generation.
For Ngu, old footballers do not die … they just continue to play the game.
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