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Filipina Olympian weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz has officially punched her way towards the upcoming Tokyo Olympics after securing a spot in the highly-anticipated quarterly global sports event and finished in fourth place during the recently-concluded Asian Weightlifting Championships held last month in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and congratulating her are the MVP Sports Foundation (MVPSF), an organization that supports Filipino athletes training to bring honor to the Philippines in their respective sports whom Diaz is a beneficiary of, as well as leading Philippine telecommunications companies PLDT and Smart Communications - both chaired by Manny V. Pangilinan and helmed by their President Alfredo S. Panlilio who is also the First Vice President of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC).
“We have always believed in the importance of sports in nation-building, and Hidilyn has given us another reason to be proud as Filipinos. We are continuously supporting her in her journey to the Olympics, as she joins the roster of Filipino athletes who will be representing the country in this much-awaited sporting event,” Panlilio said. A native of Zamboanga City, Diaz ended the long Olympic medal draught for the Philippines when she bagged the silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics. She also won a gold medal in the 2018 Asian Games, a gold medal in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games held in the Philippines, and three gold medals in the 2020 Weightlifting World Cup that took place in Rome. Prior to her upcoming Tokyo Olympic stint, Diaz has successfully completed six qualifying tournaments which ensures her slot in the said event.
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Meanwhile, the MVPSF has officially announced that it has appointed broadcast personality and sports advocate Gretchen Ho as its new ambassador who is tasked to work alongside a foundation that is as committed and passionate in creating a platform for Filipino athletes including those from the foundation-supported sports. Her first order of business is to "drum up support and excitement" for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics where the MVPSF support several Filipino athletes who have qualified for the said event including Diaz, Carlos Yulo, Irish Magno, Nesthy Petecio, Carlo Paalam, and Eumir Marcial. “She has been a leading voice in Philippine sports and living proof that sport can be a vehicle for positive change in society so it made perfect sense to have her come on as our ambassador,” Panlilio said. “There are many stories of triumph and success that are just waiting to be told, and we believe Gretchen is the best person to tell these to the Filipino people."
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NWA Returns To PPV On June With "When Our Shadows Fall"
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| (Image Source: FITE/National Wrestling Alliance/Lightning One Inc.) |
Following the success of its first PPV event since the start of the pandemic "Back For The Attack" and the highly-anticipated return of NWA Powerrr, the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is making its return to PPV on June with its second live global television event "When Our Shadows Fall" emanating from the GPB Studios in Atlanta, Georgia presented exclusively on FITE.
With Joe Galli, Tim Storm, Velvet Sky, May Valentine and Kyle Davis glittering the stage as its broadcast team, NWA's "When Our Shadows Fall" will feature Worlds Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis, National Champion Chris Adonis, Television Champion "The Pope" Elijah Burke, World Tag Team Champions Aron Stevens and JR Kratos and Women's World Champion and All Elite Wrestling (AEW) star Serena Deeb. Also appearing for in-ring action are Trevor Murdoch, Tyrus with Austin Idol, Thom Latimer, Thunder Rosa, Taryn Terrell and Melina among others.
"When Our Shadows Fall" will also feature an exclusive and newly recorded effort from Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Jeff Schroeder, who is asked by NWA President William Patrick "Billy" Corgan to write a song representing the PPV's dark and ominous circus-esque theme. "We ask our fans from all over the globe to join us as we continue to build on the 73 years-and-counting tradition of the National Wrestling Alliance. It's an awesome legacy to have to navigate, but as you've seen recently with Triller's headline-making acquisition of FITE, the future of television and live broadcast events is in the digital sphere," Corgan said.
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Rak Of Aegis Goes Online
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The Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) in partnership and cooperation with the Organisasyon Ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM) and the PhilPop MusicFest Foundation are proudly presenting the online PPV (Pay Per View) streaming of Rak Of Aegis on July 31-August 1, 2021 and August 7-8, 2021 exclusively on www.ticket2me.net as the banner project of PETA's fundraising project #TakePETABeyondCOVID and as part of this year's Linggo Ng Musikang Pilipino (LMP) celebration.
Featuring songs from the popular Filipino rock band Aegis, the jukebox musical tells the story of the impoverished Barangay Venezia which has been submerged in floodwater for two months. Since 2014, Rak Of Aegis has captured the hearts of audiences with its humour, music, and messages of resiliency and hope. Now, Villa Venezia and its well-loved residents will grace the screens with a newfound relevance to the show's message. Rak Of Aegis Online is a testament that the resilience of those in Villa Venezia exists not only in the play, but also in the Filipinos trying to navigate the continuing threat of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the artists who have strived to thrive and survive amidst the challenges of the local theater industry brought about by the pandemic.
For more information on how to purchase tickets for Rak Of Aegis Online as well as its streaming cast, visit @petatheater on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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WarnerMedia, CATCHPLAY Bares HBO Asia Original Taiwanese Drama Series "Trinity Of Shadows"
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WarnerMedia and CATCHPLAY announced a new HBO Asia Original Taiwanese Series, the fifteen-part hour long Trinity Of Shadows, co-presented by HKTVE, produced by David Tang (Dad’s Suit, The Long Goodbye and Who Killed Cock Robin?), directed by Bo-Hao Hong (Dad’s Suit, Wake Up S2), screenwritten by Chien-Ming Huang (Scoundrels, Wake Up) and starring award-winning Taiwanese actors Kaiser Chuang, Sandrine Pinna and Kuan-Ting Liu as well as MIRROR's Stanley Yau.
Premiering on June 13 with two back-to-back episodes every Sunday at 9:00 pm on HBO and HBO GO in the Philippines, Trinity Of Shadows revolves around a murder investigation that bares similarities to a cold case that happened three years ago. During the investigation, the lead detective (Pinna), an up-and-coming public official (Chuang) and a rookie policeman (Liu) are drawn together into a dark labyrinth of power play. Viewers can also stream or download all full episodes of THE WORLD BETWEEN US, a ten-part hour-long award-winning series previously co-presented by WarnerMedia and CATCHPLAY that follows the aftermath of a mass-shooting where all parties involved – the killer, the victims, the victims’ families, the media and the defense teams, whose fates are all intertwined, exclusively on HBO GO.
