07 April 2015

Game Day Weekend S3: Ready, Set, Go!

BY Gretchen Ho

The Gameday Weekend crew is back! This time around with more in store for you. We have 26 episodes in the pipeline and we promise to make every episode more exciting, thrilling and entertaining! This season we are bound to experience sports to the extreme. Good news is, since extreme is our theme, we will be taking the show even outside Metro Manila!! Are you ready Philippines? Here we come!

Boom Gonzales, Mia Cabalfin and myself (L-R)

Thank you Underarmour for my athletic apparel.

Our first episode for the season: track and field. The Philippine Sports Arena (formerly Ultra) oval is really no stranger to me since we used to cross-train here for volleyball back in high school. In fact, when I think of Ultra, all I remember are those rounds that we did in the oval, those sets of circuit training and the number of harvard steps we did on the bleachers under the heat of the striking sun. All of us hated training here, but admittedly, we all knew it was an essential part of our conditioning pre-season.

Newly renovated Philippine Sports Arena Oval.

The infamous bleachers.

It was such an honor to be taught by one of the Philippines’ winningest athletes in track and field, Elma Muros. Having been born in the 1990s, I have only heard about her name, which is often mentioned alongside Lydia De Vega. I have never been a witness to her achievements though, and this made me even more excited to meet one of the most talked about athletes in Philippine history. When Ms.Elma entered the oval, she was already oozing with energy and was quick to acknowledge us. What an amazing personality she has! So humble, endearing, bubbly, focused and intense, all at the same time! Surprising thing about it was, she was so used to speaking in front of the camera. I guess it comes with being a full-time coach to kids 

The obligatory photo with a legendary Filipino athlete, Elma Muros.

Our special guest athlete for our premiere episode? No less than the Phenom, Kiefer Ravena. We all know he plays basketball really good and we also know that basketball entails a lot of running. He admits, however, that he has never liked running. Wonder how the Phenom will fare in our Throwdown Challenge? Catch the first episode on March 28, 7pm on Balls Channel and 11pm on ABSCBN Sports + Action.

Kiefer Ravena wearing his favorite colors: green and blue. Hehe. Hi Kief!!

Running has always been a big part of my training regimen. I do it to keep fit in the off-season, preseason and even during the season. I can do it anytime and anywhere. That’s how much I love running. I mostly love long distance runs because it allows me to clear my mind and relax. However, right now I’m trying to do more sprints to gain power and explosiveness. Will my experience be enough to compete against Mia, Boom and Kiefer? Find out this coming March 28 

We are at the starting line of a new season. Ready, set, go!!