Carlos ‘Caloy’ Loyzaga, the greatest basketball player the Philippines has ever produced, will be joining his global peers on August 23 when he is inducted posthumously to the FIBA Hall of Fame at the close of the FIBA World Congress at Sofitel, two days before the start of the 2023 World Cup which the country is lead co-hosting with Japan and Indonesia.
Known as the “Big Difference” during his reign in the 50s for his singular effect on the game, Loyzaga will be the second Filipino to be enshrined to the FIBA Hall of Fame after compatriot and two-time Olympic coach Dionisio Calvo, who was inducted as a contributor in March 2007.
Loyzaga will have for company in the current list 7-foot-5 Chinese superstar and former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming.
Loyzaga led the Philippine team to back-to-back Olympiads — in Helsinki in 1952 (9th place) and Melbourne (7th place) — and basked in the glow of the bronze medal during the 1954 FIBA World Championship in Rio de Janeiro where he was named to the five-man All-Tournament Team after posting the third highest scoring average in the competition.
On the way to the third place finish, the Philippines beat Paraguay, Formosa, Israel, Canada, France and Uruguay.
Completing the latest batch of inductees are players Amaya Valdemoro, Yuko Oga, Penny Taylor, Katrina McClain, Wlamir Marques, Sonny Hendrawan, Angelo Monteiro dos Santos Victoriano and the late Zurab Sakandelidze, and coaches Valerie Garnier and Alessandro Gamba.
Former national and PBA player Chito Loyzaga paid tribute to those who made possible his father’s inclusion in the elite class.
“On behalf of the Loyzaga family, we would like to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation to everyone who contributed, assisted, and supported the induction of Carlos “Caloy” M. Loyzaga to the FIBA Hall of Fame. Maraming salamat! Mabuhay ang Atletang Pilipino!” Loyzaga said in a statement released following the announcement early this month.
Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas President Al S. Panlilio, who actively spearheaded the nomination, was profuse in gratitude to FIBA for recognizing Loyzaga’s contribution to international basketball.
“We, in SBP, are greatly honored to have pursued with FIBA the nomination of Caloy Loyzaga to the Hall of Fame,” said Panlilio, recently elected second vice president of FIBA Asia.
“King Caloy, indeed, is the Big Difference. With his incomparable talent, he put Philippine basketball in the world map and left an indelible mark in the global consciousness with his achievements in the international stage.”
Sharing the view is SBP Executive Director Sonny Barrios, who was part of the team that pushed for Loyzaga’s inclusion.
“We had formed a committee, chaired by SBP Trustee/Treasurer Ricky Palou, to gather the necessary documentation, including old media articles, that chronicled the colorful career of King Caloy through the years as required by FIBA for all nominees, highlighting how he led the country in international competition,” said Barrios.
Loyzaga’s legend is spread out all over the local basketball landscape, from national teams that won four gold medals in the Asian Games and two FIBA Asia Cup championships, including a victory over South Korea in their own backyard in 1967, to corporate ballclubs that dominated the Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA), as player and coach.
The Philippine Sports Commission named him among the first batch of inductees in its own Hall of Fame in 2010, while his alma matter San Beda College, which Loyzaga gifted with three NCAA titles, paid one of its greatest alumni the highest compliment in 2016 by retiring his No. 14 jersey following his passing in late January that year.
In life and after, Caloy Loyzaga truly was the big difference.
