Before the World Cup, There Was 'Thrilla in Manila' and Chess Olympiad
The Philippines will be hosting the 2023 Fiba Basketball World Cup, the biggest event for the sport this year. There were also other events in the past when the country was at the center of sporting activity.
Biggest sports events hosted by the Philippines
Southeast Asian Games
The multi-sport event may be a regional affair involving 11 countries, but the Southeast Asian Games remains a huge undertaking for the Philippines, which hosted it in 1991, 2005, and 2019. The last time the country played host in 2019 was the largest SEA Games ever where 5,630 athletes from 56 sports participated. In 2005, the SEA Games was held in the hubs of Manila, Bacolod, and Cebu.
World Basketball Championship
The first hosting of the Fiba Basketball World Cup by the country actually came in 1978 when it was still called as the 8th World Basketball Championship. A total of 14 countries participated with Yugoslavia defeating Soviet Union in overtime, 82-81, in the very first title game in the world championship
World Chess Championship
Fourteen years after the World Chess Olympiad, the country played host to the World Chess Championship where Anatoly Karpov staked his world title against fellow Russian Viktor Korchnoi in Baguio City. The championship is one of the most talked-about showdowns in chess, with the New York Times recently labeling it as a “notorious and intensely politicized match that has spawned books and movies.”
Thrilla in Manila
Arguably the biggest sporting event ever hosted by the country, Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier battled for the third time on October 1, 1975 at the Araneta Coliseum, incidentally one of the venues of this year’s Fiba Basketball World Cup. The match lived up to the billing with Ali winning the bout in one of the best fights in history, which ended with Frazier’s corner throwing in the towel before the 15th and final round. A banner high atop the Big Dome serves as a reminder of the epic bout.
From: Spin
