Chasing headlines and dreams in 2026

While 2025 felt like an eternity with sporting events running like clockwork the entire season, 2026 promises to be as hectic, or perhaps more explosive, as our generation of athletes enters another quarter of the century.

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With the 33rd Southeast Asian Games serving as the culmination of a schedule a busy mind could not even completely fathom - like the UAAP and NCAA Finals, and the opening salvo of Thailand SEAG all in one crazy week - the dedicated sports people had no breather, with the exception of the Christmas holidays, which, in reality, was still packed with competitions here and there.

January of the brand-new year is just as bustling like it never left the calendar of the old, with Alex Eala, with our fingers all crossed, possibly competing in the historic WTA 125 Philippine Open at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex. The sports arena is now undergoing a major rehabilitation to welcome fans and foreign visitors for the six-day tiff.

Barring any schedule conflicts as Eala will also play in the lucrative Australian Open which hits head-on with the PH Open, our tennis princess could grace the local courts and bring joy to her Filipino admirers.