INTRODUCTION
Let me start by greeting all of you a merry Christmas and a happy, prosperous New Year.

We honor tonight our top male and female athletes who have excelled in their fields and brought honors to our country for the year about to end.

It is only but proper that our outstanding athletes, sports organizations and generous supporters in sports development and promotion are, once again, honored by the oldest, most vibrant and respected association of sports chroniclers — the Philippine Sportswriters’ Association (PSA), which is this year headed by Inquirer sports editor Manolo Iñigo.
A GREAT YEAR FOR PHILIPPINE SPORTS
The year 1996 has been a big one for Philippine sports. It started with a bang in January, when a junior bowler won the Asian Youth Masters Title in Malaysia and ended in a blaze of glory when another bowler, Paeng Nepomuceno, claimed his fourth world cup crown in Castlereagh, Northern Ireland.

Nepomuceno is, of course, one of the three major players in the local sports horizon.

Light flyweight Mansueto “Onyok” Velasco gave a tremendous boost to the country’s Olympic campaign by winning a silver medal — the first in 32 years — in his division at the Centennial Games in Atlanta in August.

And then world boxing council featherweight titlist Luisito Espinosa kept the Philippines’ sports campaign in high gear by defending his title three times.

With their deadly fists and never-say-die fighting spirit, Velasco and Espinosa showed the world that to excel and be the best is the battle cry of Filipino athletes.
ECONOMIC GROWTH SPELLS GREATER ACHIEVEMENTS IN SPORTS
The Ramos administration has time and again batted for the global competitiveness of the Philippines. It has provided the momentum for the country’s drive toward economic robustness, which, while providing our people with an improved quality of life and a better future, also leads to greatness in sports, arts and culture and other fields.

The international newsmagazine Newsweek called the Philippines Asia’s next tiger. Our country’s successful hosting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, which brought to our shores the leaders of 17 economies, including President Bill Clinton of the United States, bears out the great strides Filipinos have made.
UNITY AND TEAMWORK IN SPORTS IS IMPORTANT
Our achievements in the economy and in foreign diplomacy this year are matched by our victories in sports. I say this because Nepomuceno, Velasco and Espinosa represent part of our successful campaigns in sports this year.

Let us not forget the continuing success story of pocket billiards masters Efren “Bata” Reyes, golfer Jennifer Rosales and the Philippine men’s amateur golf team which retained the Putra Cup and finished a fighting fifth in the world amateurs we also hosted. And we have the happy developments in badminton as Weena Lim became the country’s first ever Olympian and Ms. Lim, together with Kennie Asuncion, took the doubles title in Australia, and many other shining moments in sports.

Of course, we also experienced some heartaches, but overall the 1996 Philippine sporting season was full of promise and glowing achievements.

But we can only accomplish what we have set out to do if we are united. So once again, i am taking this opportunity to ask everybody, most especially our sporting leaders and athletes, to unite and express one voice in charting the course of Philippine sports.

I have always espoused the importance of unity among our sporting leaders, for they must serve as shining examples to our athletes. They should stop bickering and instead turn their attention to action — action toward the goal of achieving greatness.

Next year, we will do battle again in the Southeast Asian Games in Jakarta. Four years from now, Sydney will host the 2000 Olympic Games. As we gear for the Southeast Asian Games and the Sydney Olympics, we should bear in mind that without unity, the gains we have achieved in Atlanta and in other international arenas will go to waste.

We should be one in studying and correcting our mistakes. We will win only if we work as a team.
CLOSING
I commend the Philippine Sportswriters’ Association and its supporters in honoring our achievers in the field of sports competition and sponsors in sports development through this yearly awards night.

To all the awardees, keep up the good work. To those who did not win honors, you can always look forward to next year and the immediate future.

Pretty soon, the Jakarta Games will just be around the corner. Let us again show our neighbors we are among the best in this corner of the world.

Maligayang Pasko, masaganang Bagong Taon at mabuhay kayong lahat! Maraming salamat.