Ambrosio Padilla
Encyclopedia
Ambrosio Bibby Padilla was a former Filipino
basketball
player and former elected member of the Senate of the Philippines
. He was one of the most important figures in the Asian basketball development.
Padilla was born as the eighth of eleven children of Dr. Nicanor Padilla and Ysabel Bibby. He married Lourdes de las Alas on May 4, 1941. Padilla fathered 10 children: 6 boys and 4 girls.
Blue Eagles
in the late 1920s and led the team to capture the 1928 NCAA Philippines Basketball Championship
under coach James Martin, S.J.
. Later, he studied law at the University of the Philippines
became a varsity player of the university's baseball team in the early 1930s.
In 1930, Padilla played for the Philippines
to capture the Far Eastern Games
basketball gold medal in Tokyo
, Japan
and played alongside Jacinto Ciria Cruz
and Mariano Filomeno. In 1934, he helped the country retained the Far Eastern Games basketball championship held at home for the final time.
In 1936, Padilla was the team captain and led the Philippines to a fifth place finished in the 1936 Summer Olympics
held at Berlin
, Germany
. It remains the best finish by an Asia
n country in men's Olympic basketball history. The team was coached by Dionisio Calvo
and, aside from Padilla, boasted of great players like Ciria Cruz and Charles Borck
.
Padilla retired from basketball and became the chairman of the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation (PAAF) Basketball Committee from 1938 to 1954.
The international governing body, FIBA, appointed Padilla as its Vice President for Asia from 1956 to 1964. He was one of the forefathers and later elected President of the Asian Basketball Confederation (ABC), now known as FIBA Asia
, from 1960 to 1966 with his former coach Dionisio Calvo as the Secretary-General. When he finished his term, he served as the ABC president emeritus from 1967.
He was then, became the seventh President of the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation, the forerunner of the Philippine Olympic Committee
(POC), in 1972.
appointed Padilla as Solicitor General in 1954. He later resigned in 1957 to run for the Senate and won. He served in the Senate until 1972 when President Ferdinand Marcos
declared Martial Law. Notwithstanding his stature and brushing aside the dangers arising from his opposition to the martial law regime, he actively fought the Marcos regime with his legal skills and belief in freedom.
After Marcos was overthrown in the 1986 People Power Revolution, President Corazon Aquino
appointed Padilla to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
which was tasked to draft a new constitution for the country. Padilla was elected vice-chairman of the commission with former Supreme Court Associate Justice Cecilia Muñoz-Palma
as its chairwoman. The new Constitution was officially ratified by the Filipino people in a plebiscite held in February 2, 1987.
, Lauro Mumar
, Jacinto Ciria Cruz, Charles Borck, Edgardo Ocampo
, Mariano Tolentino, and his own Olympic coach Chito Calvo. The Ateneo de Manila University
's Ambrosio Padilla Award, which is given out annually to the university's best academically performing college varsity player from any sport, is named in his honor.
A classroom at Malcolm Hall of the University of the Philippines College of Law
is also named in his honor.
Padilla is the father of Francisco "Frank" Padilla, Founder and Servant General of the Catholic renewal group Couples for Christ Foundation Inc
.
Filipino people
The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....
basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player and former elected member of the Senate of the Philippines
Senate of the Philippines
The Senate of the Philippines is the upper chamber of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, the Congress of the Philippines...
. He was one of the most important figures in the Asian basketball development.
Padilla was born as the eighth of eleven children of Dr. Nicanor Padilla and Ysabel Bibby. He married Lourdes de las Alas on May 4, 1941. Padilla fathered 10 children: 6 boys and 4 girls.
Athletic career
Padilla captained the Ateneo de ManilaAteneo de Manila University
The Ateneo de Manila University is a private teaching and research university run by the Society of Jesus in the Philippines. It began in 1859 when the City of Manila handed control of the Escuela Municipal de Manila in Intramuros, Manila, to the Jesuits...
Blue Eagles
Ateneo Blue Eagles
The Ateneo Blue Eagles is the name of the collegiate men's varsity basketball team of the Ateneo de Manila University that plays in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, the premiere sports league in the country. The collegiate women's varsity basketball team is called the Lady...
in the late 1920s and led the team to capture the 1928 NCAA Philippines Basketball Championship
NCAA Philippines Basketball Championship
The National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament is held every first semester of the academic year . Each year, eight schools vie to win the two championships: the Juniors and Seniors...
under coach James Martin, S.J.
James A. Martin
James Aloysius Martin, S.J., was an American Jesuit priest, professor and athletic director. Martin was the world's oldest Jesuit priest at the time of his death at the age of 105 at the Georgetown University Jesuit Residence in Washington, D.C.-Early life:James A. Martin was born on August 30,...
. Later, he studied law at the University of the Philippines
University of the Philippines
The ' is the national university of the Philippines. Founded in 1908 through Act No...
became a varsity player of the university's baseball team in the early 1930s.
In 1930, Padilla played for the Philippines
Philippines national basketball team
The men's national basketball team of the Philippines represents the Philippines in international basketball competitions. It is managed by its national basketball federation, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas...
to capture the Far Eastern Games
Far Eastern Championship Games
The Far Eastern Championship Games was a small Asian multi-sport competition considered to be a precursor to the Asian Games....
basketball gold medal in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and played alongside Jacinto Ciria Cruz
Jacinto Ciria Cruz
Jacinto "Jumping Jack" Ciria Cruz is a former Filipino basketball player and coach. Ciria Cruz played for the University of Santo Tomas men's basketball team, and also represented the Philippines at the 1936 Summer Olympics as a member of the country's national basketball team. He later ventured...
and Mariano Filomeno. In 1934, he helped the country retained the Far Eastern Games basketball championship held at home for the final time.
In 1936, Padilla was the team captain and led the Philippines to a fifth place finished in the 1936 Summer Olympics
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
held at Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It remains the best finish by an Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n country in men's Olympic basketball history. The team was coached by Dionisio Calvo
Dionisio Calvo
Dionisio "Chito" Calvo was a Filipino basketball player, swimmer, and national team head coach. He was one of the greatest Filipino sportsmen in history and helped in the development of both Philippine and Asian basketball.Born in Manila, Philippines, he was a guard for the championship-winning...
and, aside from Padilla, boasted of great players like Ciria Cruz and Charles Borck
Charles Borck
Charles Borck was a Filipino basketball player. Born in Quiapo, Manila, Philippines of a German father and a Spanish mother, he was nicknamed The Blonde Bombshell because of his blond hair and good looks...
.
Padilla retired from basketball and became the chairman of the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation (PAAF) Basketball Committee from 1938 to 1954.
The international governing body, FIBA, appointed Padilla as its Vice President for Asia from 1956 to 1964. He was one of the forefathers and later elected President of the Asian Basketball Confederation (ABC), now known as FIBA Asia
FIBA Asia
FIBA Asia is a zone within the International Basketball Federation which contains all 44 Asian FIBA federations.-National teams:East AsiaGulfMiddle AsiaSoutheast AsiaWest Asia-Top ten FIBA Asia teams:...
, from 1960 to 1966 with his former coach Dionisio Calvo as the Secretary-General. When he finished his term, he served as the ABC president emeritus from 1967.
He was then, became the seventh President of the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation, the forerunner of the Philippine Olympic Committee
Philippine Olympic Committee
The Philippine Olympic Committee is the National Olympic Committee of the Philippines.-About the POC:The POC is a private, non-governmental organization composed of and serve as the mother organization of all National Sports Associations in the Philippines...
(POC), in 1972.
Political career
President Ramon MagsaysayRamon Magsaysay
Ramón del Fierro Magsaysay was the third President of the Republic of the Philippines from December 30, 1953 until his death in a plane crash in 1957. He was elected President under the banner of the Nacionalista Party.-Early life:Ramon F...
appointed Padilla as Solicitor General in 1954. He later resigned in 1957 to run for the Senate and won. He served in the Senate until 1972 when President Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
declared Martial Law. Notwithstanding his stature and brushing aside the dangers arising from his opposition to the martial law regime, he actively fought the Marcos regime with his legal skills and belief in freedom.
After Marcos was overthrown in the 1986 People Power Revolution, President Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...
appointed Padilla to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986
The Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986 was the commission of the tasked to draft the Constitution of the Philippines in 1986.-Legislation:-Members: Resigned-See also:*Congress of the Philippines*Senate of the Philippines...
which was tasked to draft a new constitution for the country. Padilla was elected vice-chairman of the commission with former Supreme Court Associate Justice Cecilia Muñoz-Palma
Cecilia Muñoz-Palma
Cecilia Muñoz-Palma was a Filipino jurist and the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court of the Philippines...
as its chairwoman. The new Constitution was officially ratified by the Filipino people in a plebiscite held in February 2, 1987.
Legacy
Padilla, who died on August 7, 1996, was inducted into the Philippine National Hall of Fame in January 1999 along with other Filipino basketball legends like Carlos LoyzagaCarlos Loyzaga
Carlos M. Loyzaga is a former Filipino basketball player and coach. He led the Philippine National team to a Bronze Medal finish in the 1954 FIBA World Championship. The Philippines third place finish remains the highest rank of any Asian team in the history of the tournament...
, Lauro Mumar
Lauro Mumar
Lauro "Larry" Mumar , is a former Filipino basketball player and later served as the national team head coach of India and the Philippines...
, Jacinto Ciria Cruz, Charles Borck, Edgardo Ocampo
Edgardo Ocampo
Edgardo L. Ocampo, also known as Ed Ocampo and Eddie Ocampo, was a former Filipino basketball player and head coach. Ocampo was born in Pampanga, Philippines. He played college ball for the Ateneo de Manila University, where he led the team to two championships in 1957 and 1958...
, Mariano Tolentino, and his own Olympic coach Chito Calvo. The Ateneo de Manila University
Ateneo de Manila University
The Ateneo de Manila University is a private teaching and research university run by the Society of Jesus in the Philippines. It began in 1859 when the City of Manila handed control of the Escuela Municipal de Manila in Intramuros, Manila, to the Jesuits...
's Ambrosio Padilla Award, which is given out annually to the university's best academically performing college varsity player from any sport, is named in his honor.
A classroom at Malcolm Hall of the University of the Philippines College of Law
University of the Philippines College of Law
University of the Philippines College of Law or UP Law is the law school of the University of the Philippines. Since 1948, it has been located at the University of the Philippines Diliman in Quezon City, the flagship campus of UP's seven constituent universities. Until the 1970s, night classes of...
is also named in his honor.
Padilla is the father of Francisco "Frank" Padilla, Founder and Servant General of the Catholic renewal group Couples for Christ Foundation Inc
Foundation for Family and Life
The Couples for Christ Foundation for Family and Life is a Philippine-based Catholic charismatic lay community that emphasizes family life renewal and evangelization. It was founded in 2007 by former leaders and members of Couples for Christ-Global Missions Foundation , another Catholic organization...
.
Awards and achievements
- 1928 NCAA Philippines champions
- 1930 Far Eastern Games champion
- 1934 Far Eastern Games champions
- 1936 Summer Olympics, fifth place
- Philippine National Hall of Fame (1999)