applause for a champion

the sight of a filipino lifting the world pool championhsip trophy is something extraordinary. back from the dead after losing his two matches in the preliminaries, ronato alcano beat the big guns for the hundred thousand dollars cash prize -- the likes of efren reyes and the deadly taiwanese duo of wu chia ching, the defending champion and kuo po-cheng, last year's runner-up. the subdued pinoy from rizal's birthplace displayed superb abilities in cashing on banks, utilizing soft breaks and deadly combinations en route to victory and gave all his countrymen something to cheer about in this era of high prices and uncertainty.

although i've heard of marlon manalo and i've seen dennis orcollo and ramil gallego brandished their prowess when this matchroom sports-sponsored event was still played in cardiff. i've never had a glimpse of alcano. until this week. the philippines has ceased eons ago to not only be known as a bustamante-reyes country, it's an acclaimed fact, that it's an enclave of a fabulous accumulation of pool talents. albeit i'm not aware of a kanye west synergy transplanting into pool, (or is it lee van corteza?) the philippines produces gifted players through sheer grit and hustle. a keen eye and stroke of pool genius could propel a fortunate individual from the doldrums of poverty and into the pantheons nonpareil of greatness. unlike david beckham's football, there's no age limit. perhaps there is, let's say 60? or 55?

perhaps as pool sometimes require eerie stillness while the match is in progress, the PICC crowd should have refrained from constant movements, or worse cellphones blaring while the players were sashaying the table. subdued is not just our adjective. but it definitely was the word to describe one ronato alcano, world pool champion 2006 (photos taken from worldpoolchampionship.com).