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Philippines, 13 Nov 2025 |
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Tabal wins SAC 'Athlete of the Year' PhilBoxing.com Tue, 27 Mar 2018  Mary Joy Tabal. Cebuana Olympian Mary Joy Tabal shone the brightest among all the stars after she was crowned as "Athlete of the Year" during the 36th Sportswriters Association of Cebu-San Miguel Brewery (SAC-SMB) All-Cebu Sports Awards yesterday at the atrium of Robinsons Galleria Cebu. Tabal bagged the so-called mother of all awards for her stirring exploits in long distance running, both on home soil and on foreign shores. She capped what had been a banner year by producing gold medal for the Philippines in marathon event during the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Malaysia and for completing a historic five-peat in the Milo National Marathon. Tabal's record-setting triumph in Milo Marathon was a bittersweet one as she learned of her father's death barely 24 hours before what she later described as the toughest race of her illustrious career that brought her to the prestigious marathons in Boston, London and Paris. In her acceptance message, Tabal spotlighted the role of sportswriters in her path to glory. "I am very honored and humbled to be receiving this award! Let me start by sharing to you my humble beginnings and how these sportswriters has played an important role leading to where I am now," said Tabal, who made history as the first Pinay marathoner in the Olympics two years ago in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. Tabal vividly recalled that when she started shifting from being a spinter into a long distance runner way back in 2009, she had a simple dream - to make headlines in the newspapers. "Sa sugod palang, way back 2009 when I started to shift from a sprinter to a long distance runner, I had this simple dream, kay even winning or being in the podium in shorter distances like 3K and 5K, gamay ra kaayo ang akoang name sa newspaper, usahay dili pa gani maapil,"she said. "So ga dream ko na unta one day ma-headline pud ko and kanang naa gyud akoang picture." In just a short span of time, she reached that dream at the moment she least expected. "Wala naku damha na maabot dayun na nako. It was September 9, 2009 when I joined my first 10K race and I collapsed at the finish line. Never did I expect na ma-headline ko a day after kay wala gyud ko nidaog. I did finish though at fifth place but what made me really happy was seeing a photo of me on a newspaper. Maski nag-collapse lang noon ko sa picture pero para naku, na-achieve na akoang dream ato despite na ako ra ang nalipay ato nga time. So, that's where I started." Tabal gamely admitted that the stories written about her are not all good. There are times that it broke her heart, but she takes it as a challenge and eventually as a ladder to success. "I'd also experienced how is it to be compared to someone, and how these sportswriters have made good stories about it. Usahay malipay ko magbasa, usahay pud maguol ko. But it's more on giving challenges to yourself. Kung dili tungod sa media, dili me maningkamot sa ako kakompetensiya ug dili mi mo-asenso mao isig paningkamutay. I am just very lucky that I am surrounded with good people who influenced me to do good! I am sharing you this because we are all athletes here, so be prepare with that," Tabal added. Having said that, Tabal expressed her profound gratitude to the sportswriters for helping her mold what she is now today. "I will take this opportunity to thank these people, our local media, the sport writers of Cebu for tracking every journey I took. For being my voice especially at times na dili gyud ko katingog, for making a very loud noise just to help me get into the SEA Games and Olympics. Makaingun gud ko pirme sa akong kaugalingun na palangga gyud ko kay maski dili ko katingug, naay motingug para nako.Maong mapasalamaton kaayo ko ninyo kay kung wala mo, dli ni naku maabot kung asa ko karon. This made me become a prouder Cebuana kay magtinabangay gyud and isog especially if kahibaw ta what we are doing is right." Tabal also offered her heartfelt congratulations to her fellow awardees, and egged them on to strive even harder to excel in their respective fields and keep on fighting for the flag and country with great resolve. "To all of you who are here, take time to thank these people for recognizing our achievements. Sa kadaghang atleta then you are here, that's a big achievement already. Thank you coach also because you won't make it here without that person, kay kung naa baya tay nindot nga achievement, usahay malimtan ang coach ug ang athlete ra pirme ma-recognize," said Tabal. "Pero kung bati gani og performance kitang mga athlete, kinsa man ang basulon og una, di ba ang coach? So, angay gyud na pasalamatan nato sila. And of course, thank your parents who are very supportive to you. Masuya gani ko every time naa koy makita na parents na supportive kaayo sa iyahang anak kay ako wala jud ana, eveytime modaog ko, wala koy maingnan nga nidaog ko. But I have my siblings man sad, so kamu nga naa gyud inyuha ginikanan na nag-support ninyu mas samot pa seguro mo maningkamot." "To end this, I am very thankful to God for giving me a good reason to continue living since I had a very difficult and sad past. But through my struggles, He made me realize how beautiful life is and how good God is." Aside from Tabal, also honored were Jean Henri Lhuillier as "Sportsman of the Year" for his invaluable contribution to the development of tennis and batted sports in the country, orthopaedic doctors Antonio San Juan and Roel Deja?o as ORLACSAN Memorial awardees for rendering their services to injured athletes and those needing rehabilitation for free most of the time, and Kamagayan FC founder Rico Ramirez as Presidential awardee for his dedicated efforts in developing football talents especially the indigent kids.  |
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