Meet the Speakers: Jaemark Tordecilla

From an outsider's perspective

A look at the person who swept the Philippine sports writing world away

By Mychael Thompson Miravite, The Playbook

B R I E F   B I O

Jaemark Tordecilla

Blogger, FireQuinito (since 2009)

Writer, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism

College: University of the Philippines - Los Banos

Jaemark Tordecilla has always been one of the most outspoken sports writers today. His ranting sessions and tirades online have either fetched praises from his fans, or earned flak from his critics.

His web log, firequinito.com, continues to make waves among the sports-loving guys in the dot-com community and was awarded in 2009 as Best Sports Blog of the Year by the Philippine Blog Awards. His posts, from basketball updates to Pacquiao stories, from haranguing of sports officials to celebrity-twitter-stalking, often started discussions among the blogosphere which, according to him, has been one of the reasons why he writes in the internet.

“My favorite part about writing, especially on the web, is the kind of discussion that my work is able to start. It’s always great when people start a stimulating conversation based on stuff I had written,” said the University of the Philippines Technology Management graduate.

The self-confessed fan of gazillion of sports writers especially Inquirer’s Francis Ochoa, believes that In The Huddle is a good venue to produce tomorrow’s best sports writers. “Hopefully more than a handful of good writers will come out of these seminars.”

Tordecilla, currently working for the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, quipped that his desire for encounters and conversations with sports stars and fans alike, has been his motivation to follow his dream of writing sports. As an advice to young and aspiring writers, he encouraged everyone to write despite being against the odds.

“Keep writing. Write even when no one’s paying you, even when no one’s reading you, even when no one thinks you’re good enough.”

He will be one of the speakers who will share their specialties in Adventurer In The Huddle 2010 National Sports Writing Congress this November and he has this to share to our participants: “[ITH] is going to be fun. I’ve been writing about sports from an outsider’s perspective, which allows me to be more irreverent, and hopefully that will translate to my talk. Also, I’ll try to work in jokes about Val Sotto.” ###

Meet the Speakers: Tessa Jazmines

Passion, spirit, art

Tessa Jazmines and her fountain of youth

By Danielle Nakpil, The Playbook

B R I E F   B I O

Ma. Theresa Jazmines

Columnist, BusinessMirror

Professor, University of the Philippines - Diliman

College: University of the Philippines - Diliman

Daddy’s unica hija turned out to be someone to look up to in the man-dominated world of sports writing.

It is indeed, rare to see a female going along with tough guys, witnessing an action-packed game and writing a sports story about it. Well, Ma. Theresa “Tessa” Jazmines has raised the flag of all women to show that they are no inferior to men.

The youthful Jazmines is one of the three beautiful ladies who’ll be speaking in the Adventurer In the Huddle: 1^st National Sports Writing Congress 2010 and will help young scribes hone their skills and develop their potentials in sports writing.

When asked about her inspiration when entering the world of sports writing, “Not anyone in particular. I just wanted to be in sports. I guess my Dad – who’s a big sports fan – turned me into sports. I am an only child and my Dad turned me into his sports buddy. I just love everything about the sports milieu,” she said in an interview with The Playbook.

The University of the Philippines cum laude, who also used to write in the Philippine Star, Sports Weekly Magazine, Woman Today and Sports World, also quipped that the best thing in writing sports stories is following your instincts and being true to yourself.

To put it bluntly, it is doing what you love in the field that you love.

Jazmines finished her AB Journalism and masteral degree in Mass Communication in the University of the Philippines. She is currently an Associate Professor of Journalism in UP Diliman and a columnist in the Business Mirror.

As a well-known personality in her chosen field, Tessa gives her advice to aspiring writers of this generation.
“Simple lang. Follow your passion. Don’t let anything stand in your way. It’s Love – just not with an individual. Love is like water. It will find a way to flow, seep, escape, run. You can’t stop it. If you feel that way about being in sports – as an athlete or as someone who records what athletes do – just let it flow.”


For her, sports is such a passion, a spirit, and an art. She admires the athletes, coaches and team owners who sacrifice a lot for sports, who give their 110% to be better than their best.


Jazmines herself managed the CMC basketball team (the CMC Wildcat) who won the intrams championship twice in college. Her players were no ordinary: Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio, politician Gilbert Remulla, and Richard Gomez, to name a few.

As a message to hopeful writers who’ll be attending ITH 2010, “Follow your passion. Trust your instincts. And when you’re already into sports writing, hone your talent. Read, read, read. Experience, experience, experience. Always keep an open mind and cover even the sports you don’t like. Learn the rules. If you’re a girl, never fall in love with your subject. And lastly, stay humble. Keep your two feet on the ground. But keep them in sports shoes.” ###

Meet the Speakers: Francis T.J. Ochoa

Peerless

His love for the game - and the craft - brings Francis Ochoa a cut above the rest

By Mychael Thompson Miravite, The Playbook

B R I E F   B I O

Francis T.J. Ochoa

Assistant sports editor, Philippine Daily Inquirer

College: University of Santo Tomas

Website: http://theboyfromsmallville.wordpress.com

Francis Ochoa to Philippine sports writing is what Shakespeare is to literature. There is a number of ways to prove this but the best approach will be a tour of his normal routine.

Ochoa, once a News and Features editor for University of Sto. Tomas’ The Varsitarian before occupying the sports editor’s desk at the Philippine Daily Inquirer, has been a firm believer of sports. He believes that sports is not meant just to fill the back pages of the newspaper but also has every right to shoot for space in the front page. 

And he said with the way In The Huddle was organized, he’d be able to spread that message to our aspiring sports scribes.

As a writer, getting to know things about sports heroes that you’d never known before has always been the thing thrilling him the most.

“The times I enjoy the most are those times when I interviewed athletes and they reveal a little of themselves that don’t show up in their public personas. It’s a thrill to know they’re really just like me and you except that they were blessed with this incredible gift to perform beyond the bounds of normalcy. So beyond the buzzer-beating shots, the incredible victories and the sensational knockouts, it’s talking to the athletes after the game that I enjoy the most.”

When asked what’s the best thing about sports writing, the all-around guy from Cagayan de Oro City shot back: “You get to keep that child-like sense of awe and wonderment in life. There’s nothing routine about sports writing. Every day, something happens that floors you. Even in things that are expected, victories that are virtually preordained, there are things that still surprise you and make your jaw drop.”

"And then there’s the front-row passes to the most natural high that no drug can ever give you. Every day you run into people who are having the time of their lives—champions, record-breakers or even students who’ve just earned their athletic scholarships—and it lifts you up. And there’s no balancing factor.”

Sports has really molded him into someone most of us would look up to. He has been one of the most popular sports writers of today. He writes not just about the action of the sport, but also about the life in it.

His chosen field has already taken him to different places where, according to him, he learned different cultures and different ways people look at sports. But as a die-hard fan of the game, the best place he had ever been, he said, was right there in the moment—in the moment of someone’s greatest performance, most painful defeat, proudest accomplishment.

As a tip to our aspiring writers, Ochoa has just a few but meaningful words for them: “It is our job to go out and look for that story and serve as a platform for them to be heard or read about. Just soak everything up. The ITH experience will really benefit and enrich you, especially if you’re seriously considering a career in sports writing one of these days. Ask the questions that matter to you. Don’t worry if you feel the question might sound stupid. Just ask. A lot of my lecture modules have been modified throughout the years based on the questions of seminar participants. So by asking questions, you not only help yourselves but help lecturers get better too.” ###

PR 1: Adventurer ITH national campus sports writing congress slated

Adventurer ITH national campus sports writing congress slated

Around 500 campus journalists and 300 school paper advisers from across the country are expected to join the Adventurer In the Huddle: 1^st National Campus Sports Writing Congress on November 8, 10 and 12 at the JCSGO Seed Dome in Cubao, Quezon City.

A crack roster of speakers – led by veteran sports scribes Bong Pedralvez, Tessa Jazmines and Francis Ochoa and sports broadcasters TJ Manotoc and Patricia Bermudez-Hizon – will lecture the delegates from elementary, secondary and tertiary schools on “the Xs and Os” of sports journalism.

“This is a big step toward achieving our goal to bring the level of campus sports journalism in the country notches higher,” organizing committee head Josiah Israel Albelda said.

The three-day ITH congress, presented by Adventurer and also supported by Business Mirror, Active White, Sports Radio, Manila Standard Today, People’s Journal, Full Court Fresh and the NCR Secondary School Paper Advisers Association, will also featurePacific Rims author Rafe Bartholomew, Rick Olivares, Tina Maralit, Jonas Terrado, Edison Ching, Rex San Diego, Jenner Ong and Albelda as speakers.

On top of the sessions and as an added boost for the participants, there will also be competitions for Sports Sections (campus papers), Interview Story Writing, Coverage Story Writing and Sports Photojournalism with incentives totaling P100, 000.00.

Winners will be chosen from the elementary, high school, college and adviser divisions by a panel of judges composed mostly of speakers themselves.  

Among the schools that have confirmed their participation are Philippine Science High School – Main Campus, Quezon National High School, New Era University, Bulacan State University, Bataan Peninsula State University and host JCSGO Christian Academy.

The Congress fee is pegged at P650, but organizer Ignite Academic Training is offering an “early-bird” rate of P550 until October 29, while groups of five and 11 (from one school) are entitled to discounts of   P2500 and P5000, respectively.

For more inquiries and registration, contact IAT at (0906) 444 3878, (02) 439 8568 or e-mail at igniteworkshops@rocketmail.com. Updates are also posted regularly at the event’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/ith2010. ###