by: Mickey Ingles

April saw the announcement of the upcoming batch of inductees to the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame (PSHOF). The Philippine Sports Commission and the Philippine Olympic Committee announced the seven new HOFers last month, with the enshrinement ceremony scheduled for May 20. The new HOFers are a who’s who of the country’s greatest:

1. Basketball legend Mon Fernandez,
2. Atlanta 1996 silver medalist Onyok Velasco,
3. Gymnast and Olympic taekwondo bronze medalist Bea Lucero-Lhuillier,
4. Athletics legend Isidro del Prado,
5. Dual athlete for football and basketball Ed Pacheco,
6. Former World No. 72 in tennis Cecil Mamiit, and
7. Powerlifter and 2000 Sydney Paralympics bronze medalist Adeline Dumapong-Ancheta.

While most would be familiar with the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame or the Pro Football Hall of Fame, our very own version, the PSHOF, is fundamentally different because it’s actually mandated by law.

Created way back in  1999 via Republic Act No. 8757, the PSHOF was established to recognize and honor distinguished Filipino athletes, coaches, and trainers. (Despite the PSHOF Law being passed in a time when we were all scared of the Y2K bug, the first batch of HOFers was only inducted in 2010.) However, not all successful athletes, coaches, or trainers can walk their way into a PSHOF enshrinement. The law sets some exacting standards to even be eligible for nomination. Nominees must either be:

1. A gold medalist at the SEA Games,
2. A silver medalist at the Asian Games or regional games,
3. A bronze medalist in the Olympics, or
4. A world champ in any professional or amateur sports competition.

Now, think. Is your favorite Filipino athlete or idol eligible? 

Nominees are screened by a committee comprised of the PSC Chairman, POC President, Games and Amusements Board Chairman, two members from the national sports associations (NSAs), and two members of the private sector. 

Funnily, RA 8757 doesn’t require that these athletes, coaches, and trainers have retired—which is an amendment both the POC and PSC wish to suggest  in later versions of the law—but the screening committee is allowed to set and promulgate other criteria for nomination and selection of nominees.

Since we’re in the topic of retirement, did you know that another law grants national athletes and coaches retirement benefits? 

Republic Act No. 10699, the same law which grants cash incentives for winning athletes, seemingly discriminates against PWDs, and gives a 20% discount for national athletes, also grants any national athlete and coach who wins in an international competition a lump sum equivalent to 25% of his or her total cash incentives during the athlete’s or coach’s career. The catch is, only national athletes and coaches who have actually won an international competition are eligible for this lump sum payday. 

Note that the retirement benefit is 25% of the total cash incentives an athlete has received during his or her career. Remember that an Olympic gold medalist is entitled to P10,000,000.00 under the same law, so if you do the math and that gold medalist retires, he or she is looking at a P2,500,000.00 payday. If you add other incentives from winning in the Asian Games and SEA Games, that’s a lot! And it’s not discretionary on the PSC either. The law mandates the release of retirement benefits within 60 days from the filing of retirement papers.

So, if you’re a national athlete who has won internationally and you’re thinking of  retiring soon, file those retirement papers with the PSC. A good payday is waiting for you.

And maybe, just maybe, we’ll see your name in the PSHOF.

Mickey Ingles is the editor-in-chief of Batas Sportiva. He is also a member of the Ateneo Sports Hall of Fame.