REY C. LACHICA
For young dribblers, the last summer was a forgettable one – no thanks to coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that brought the world economy down to its knees and put almost everything on hold for months.
No outside activities, no burgers and no fries from their favorite fastfood chains since the community quarantine was imposed by President Duterte on March 16 to help stem the spread of the deadly virus that has already claimed thousands of lives across the globe by now.
But there were few creative young ballers who managed to stay fit and sharp in their chosen sport.
One them was Dominic Joaquin “Champ” Arejola.
Through the help of his father Erick, an AirAsia executive and Board Governor of the NorthPort Batang Pier in the PBA, Champ was able to divide his time almost perfectly.
“There’s time for tutorial activities and there’s time for physical activities,” said the younger Arejola who is a self-confessed fanatic of Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors.
His father, however, remains up among the chosen few he idolizes.
“Of course, daddy Erick was the biggest influence why I picked basketball,” said Champ.
Before he became a champion manager in the defunct Philippine Basketball League (PBL), the older Arejola was part of the La Salle Archers that won a UAAP title in 2001.
Standing at 5-foot-5, Champ is no ordinary budding basketball player. He also excels in academics being a consistent winner in mathematics at the De La Salle Zobel.
Like all his fellow young dribblers, Champ is fervently praying that all clinical trials for a coronavirus vaccine will be successful so that the deadly disease will be eradicated the soonest.
If that happens, kids will certainly have a summer to remember next year.
“We missed so many opportunities last summer, like playing in a tournament and the camaraderie with my teammates,” said Champ.
