Armadillos with Benefits™ - PicPocket-Labs, Inc. details its plans/roadmap at SxSW for combining "location-based NFTs" and loyalty programs

Karate's Marie Adriano bags 5th PH medal in 2026 Asian Games, Gilas 3x3 teams book QF slots

The Philippine karate delegation added another medal to the country"s haul at the 2026 Asian Games as Marie June Adriano clinched bronze in the women"s kumite -50kg event on Wednesday.

Alex Eala begins Singapore Tennis Open run against Tatiana Prozorova

Alexandra Eala will begin her Singapore Tennis Open campaign on Thursday night against Tatiana Prozorova.

Asian Games: weightlifter Ri sets 3 world records to win North Korea’s first medal

North Korea’s Ri Song-gum set three world records to give her country their first gold in weightlifting at the Asian Games on Wednesday, while South Korea’s badminton world No 1 An Se-young had stern words for her watching father. Ri set the world records in the women’s 49kg class in Nagoya, joining an elite club of just four weightlifters who have won three Asian Games gold medals. The reigning two-time world champion added to her Asian Games golds in Jakarta in 2018 in the 48kg class and...

Collegiate Press Corps elects new officers for 2026-27 athletic season

The Collegiate Press Corps has its new set of officers for the 2026-27 athletic season, which covers UAAP Season 89 and NCAA Season 102, following elections held last Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Shooters claim team bronze at Asian Games

Dương Thúy Vi also brought a bronze medal in the women’s wushu jianshu and qiangshu event.

Asian Games: Weightlifter Rosegie Ramos falls just short of medal, settles for 4th in 53kg

Filipina weightlifter Rosegie Ramos came up just short of the podium after finishing fourth in the women's 53kg division at the 2026 Asian Games in Japan on Wednesday.

Ramos settles for fourth in Asian Games weightlifting

MANILA, Philippines — Filipina weightlifter Rosegie Ramos finished fourth in the women’s 53kg division at the 20th Asian Games on Wednesday. Ramos posted a 203kg total, lifting 93kg in the snatch and 110kg in the clean and jerk. She failed in her third and final clean-and-jerk attempt at 113kg. North Korea’s Kang Hyon-gyong successfully defended her Asian Games title, setting a new Games record with a 223kg total from a 99kg snatch and 124kg clean and jerk. China’s Zhao Jinlan took the silver medal with 218kg, while Thailand’s Surodchana Khambao claimed bronze with 214kg. Ramos is the first of the Philippines’ five weightlifters scheduled to compete at the Asian Games.

Asian Games: Gilas Women 3x3 team dominates Malaysia to book quarterfinals spot

Gilas Pilipinas Women 3x3 team's chase for an elusive gold medal continued after it dominated Malaysia, 17-12, to complete a group stage sweep in the 2026 Asian Games.

Asian Games: Natalie Kan ‘really surprised’ to win bronze, break record in 100m butterfly

Hong Kong’s Natalie Kan Cheuk-tung beat her personal best time twice in a single day and broke a Hong Kong record set by Siobhan Haughey on her way to bronze in the women’s 100m butterfly at the Asian Games on Wednesday. The 24-year-old touched the wall in 58.05 seconds to finish third behind China’s Yu Yiting and Zhang Yufei, eclipsing Haughey’s previous city mark of 58.12 seconds set in 2023. China’s Yu and Zhang captured gold and silver with times of 56.41 and 56.44, respectively. Kan had...

VBA Finals: Saigon Heat close in on VBA title

Coach Ime Udoka pushes Rockets to 'make some real noise' after 2 straight first-round exits

HOUSTON — Coach Ime Udoka is looking for much more from the Houston Rockets after they won 52 regular-season games before losing in the first round of the playoffs in each of the last two years. “We’re not here to just make the first round, we want to make some real noise,” Udoka said Tuesday as he began his fourth year in Houston. “Everybody’s hungrier for that and to take the next step and not plateau.” The Rockets kicked off the NBA season Tuesday as the first team to hold media day. They’ll open preseason with two games against the Dallas Mavericks on Oct. 9 and 11 in Macao, China. Houston’s media day had a much more optimistic tone this year with the return of point guard Fred VanVleet, who missed all last season after tearing an ACL just before last year’s event. “I’m definitely more excited than I was going into last season,” general manager Rafael Stone said. “The way Fred’s injury hit right on the eve of the season, that was hard on everybody and so maybe I was a little bit more nervous. And this year I feel like I know what to expect more from this group, which lends itself to some excitement for me to see what’s going on.” Udoka said VanVleet has been fully cleared for training camp and the point guard can’t wait to get back on the court with his team. “Where I am right now, with the season about 30 days out, I feel really good,” he said. “It’s going to be a process still, so you guys see won’t see the finished product, but I’m in a really good spot.” Along with the return of VanVleet, the Rockets welcome back big man Steven Adams, who was limited to only 32 games last season because of an ankle injury that required surgery. Their biggest offseason addition was 2021-22 Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, who the Rockets hope will make fellow defensive star Amen Thompson take another step in his fourth season. Kevin Durant was healthy throughout the regular season, starting 78 games in his first year in Houston after a blockbuster trade from Phoenix. But he was limited to only one game in the playoffs because of an ankle injury as the Rockets lost to the Lakers in six games. Udoka said he hopes to get Thompson and Durant’s minutes down after the two ranked first and second in minutes played in the regular season last year. That was news to Durant, a 16-time All-Star who turns 38 next week. “It’s been the same message from me for a long time, I’m better on the court,” he said. “The team is better when I’m on the court.” Durant said he isn’t opposed to sitting out in the fourth quarter if the Rockets have the lead but he's opposed to doing so just to get him off his feet. “Not just for the sake of getting my minutes down just because he’s older or he played a lot of minutes,” Durant said. “That’s what I’m supposed to be training for is to play the long haul, play 48 minutes a night. I get the concern, but if the game needs me to be out there, I want to be out there.” Udoka said a big focus this season will be finishing games after more than half of Houston’s 30 losses came in games where they had double-digit leads. Fixing that problem combined with the return of VanVleet and Adams has Stone optimistic that this could be a big year for the Rockets as they chase their first title since winning back-to-back championships in 1994-95. “We obviously had some challenges last year, particularly on the injury front and lost quite a few games that that we thought we could have won and we still had a good year,” Stone said. “So, I think there’s just a lot of meat on the bone for us to improve upon.”

Bisera fires eagle-fueled 67, takes aim at Taiwan LPGA title

MANILA, Philippines – Yvon Bisera put herself squarely in title contention with a brilliant opening 67 on Wednesday, giving the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour a major boost and raising hopes of a Filipina return to the Taiwan LPGA Tour winner’s circle after nine years. Bisera overcame a shaky start with a spectacular finish, shooting a five-under-par card to trail local aces Joy Chou and Yu Chiang Hou by just one stroke in the Kenda Tires TLPGA Open at Taichung International Golf Club. The in-form Davaoeña shotmaker overcame a three-putt miscue on her opening hole, No. 10, with a birdie on No. 13 before producing the highlight of her round on the par-5 18th, where she chipped in for eagle. She then carried the momentum to the front nine, rattling off three straight birdies from No. 2 to complete a 33-34 card. Her fast start put her in a share of third with Thai ace Nook Sukapan, Malaysian Genevieve Ling, Japanese Harumi Yoshikuwa and Taiwan veteran Ching Huang, just one behind Chou’s flawless 66. Bisera’s opening-round charge came despite battling an illness that affected her long game. She compensated with crisp iron play and steady putting, hitting 16 of 18 greens in regulation. “Medyo pangit 'yung driving ko today, since medyo pangit 'yung kondisyon ng katawan ko. Pero bumawi naman sa iron shots. At natatamaan ko halos lahat ng green,” said Bisera, who missed just two greens. She also had to regroup quickly after the early setback on No. 10, where she three-putted from 18 feet after missing the fairway. “Nahihilo pa talaga ako sa umpisa. But sinabi ko lang na madami pang birdie chances kasi madami pang par-5s na naaabot. Kaya sabi ko, par lang dun sa next hole tapos alam kong makaka-birdie naman,” she said. She was right. After her eagle on No. 18, Bisera birdied Nos. 2, 3 and 4, then closed out the round with pars to move within one shot of the lead in the NT$4-million championship, the 16th leg of the TLPGA and a co-sanctioned event with the LPGT. The 24-year-old, who is coming off two victories and a runner-up finish on the LPGT, is seeking a second overseas victory after breaking through at the Thai Ladies Masters last year. A victory here would also put her in position to become the next Filipina to win on the TLPGA since Pauline del Rosario’s breakthrough in 2017. But Bisera is refusing to look too far ahead. “I don’t want to think about it. But I want to play my game. Gusto ko lang mag-under every day. And if I have a chance, then I will take it,” said Bisera, whose campaign is backed by ICTSI. Chou, meanwhile, seized early control with a pitch-in eagle on No. 2 and five more birdies to finish with a bogey-free 66. “I think I was just pretty much doing what I planned to do, so I wasn't thinking too much about pressure,” said the 27-year-old Chou. “Even with everything, just do what I plan with my game, and yeah, not really thinking too much about the pressure.” Her eagle came on the par-4 second, where she hit her drive to the left side of the fairway before attacking from 90 yards. “I thought it was just going to be close to the pin, but then the player in the same group said, ‘Oh, it went in.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, cool,’” said Chou. “It pretty much just matched my plan and it was a good shot.” She used the bonus to fuel five more birdies while keeping a clean card to grab the first-round lead. Meanwhile, Hou closed with a dominant front-nine run, firing a blistering six-under 30. Shaking off an even-par back nine – marked by a single birdie and bogey – the former prodigy surged up the crowded leaderboard to grab a piece of the lead, fueled by birdies on Nos. 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 9. Sukapan, fresh from winning the Strait Cup Classic in Tianjin two weeks ago, also opened with a 67. She began with back-to-back birdies from No. 1, recovered from a bogey on No. 5 with birdies on Nos. 10, 12, 16 and 18, and matched Bisera’s five-under card. Ling anchored her round with a solid 33 on the front nine and also finished at 67, while Huang, winner of the Philippine Ladies Masters at Summit Point last February, mounted her charge with four birdies on the back nine for a 35-32. Reigning LPGT Order of Merit champion Sarah Ababa bucked a shaky closing frontside 37 to card a 71 and tie LPGT mainstay Seoyun Kim, who wavered with a late bogey on No. 8, at 23rd. The rest of the LPGT contingent struggled to sustain early momentum as the heat and the undulating layout took their toll. Chihiro Ikeda was two-under through nine holes on the back nine before stumbling with four bogeys against two birdies to finish with a 72, tying Mafy Singson for 32nd. Singson was also two-under through 13 holes before bogeying Nos. 14 and 16, while Ababa faltered with two bogeys at the front to finish with a 38-34. Rev Alcantara shot a 73 for joint 45th, while Kayla Nocum and amateur Lisa Sarines matched 74s for a share of 56th. Lois Kaye Go blew a two-under card after 13 holes with a costly finish, double-bogeying No. 5 and bogeying the next three holes for a 40 on the front nine and a 75, leaving her tied for 67th, alongside Harmie Constantino and Kristine Fleetwood. Amateur Mona Sarines posted a 76 for a share of 78th while Princess Superal limped with a 77 and in danger of missing the cut at joint 84th. With two rounds still to play, however, the spotlight belongs to Bisera, whose eagle-fueled 67 has put her within striking distance of a potential second overseas triumph – and given the Philippines a legitimate early title threat in Taiwan. TMT