Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc.
Current season, competition or edition: 2019–20 CESAFI season | |
 | |
| Sport | List of sports events |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2001 |
| President | Bernard Nicolas Villamor (Cebu Institute of Technology–University) |
| Commissioner | Felix Tiukinhoy, Jr. |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Country | Philippines |
| Related competitions | Philippine Collegiate Champions League |
| Official website | www |
The Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) is a sports association of 12 schools, colleges and universities in Cebu, Philippines. The CESAFI was established in 2001.[1]
History
Before CESAFI's creation, there was already a collegiate league in Cebu, named the Cebu Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). The league was created sometime in the 1930s and was the country's second college sports league, only preceded by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) which was created in 1924, and way before the creation of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) in 1938. The CCAA was regarded as clearly the best college sports league outside Metro Manila and one of the three major college leagues together with the UAAP and the NCAA, both of which are based in Manila. The CCAA has had a rich history from the 1930s until it dissolved in 2000, producing top Filipino basketball players such as Ramon Fernandez of USC, regarded as the greatest Filipino basketball player during the golden years of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) in the 1970s and 1980s, alongside two time PBA MVP Abet Guidaben, Jojo Lastimosa, Zaldy Realubit, Bernie Fabiosa and Dondon Ampalayo of USJ-R (USJ-R). Other collegiate greats who became PBA legends include PBA star Dondon Hontiveros and Biboy Ravanes of the UC (UC), and Boy Cabahug, Al Solis and superstar Manny Paner of the UV (UV).
The CCAA took an unexpected turn, when in 1999 league commissioner Felix Tiukinhoy, Jr. barred a player of Salazar Colleges of Science and Institute of Technology. The school filed a case against Tiukinhoy and the CCAA. To avoid a lengthy court process, Tiukinhoy decided to dissolve the CCAA and create a new league, which was named as the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. or CESAFI, which was basically the same league but with a different name with the same teams except for Salazar College, which was expelled from the new league. For unknown reasons, the Southwestern University (Now named as Southwestern University-Phinma), who were the champions of the last season of the CCAA, decided to pull out from the new league after the first season. However, on 2006, SWU eventually returned to the CESAFI.
In the league's first 9 years, the University of the Visayas was considered to be the league's powerhouse, winning the basketball tournament for 9 consecutive years and was a contender for basically all the sports of the league. However, this changed in the league's 10th season, after the University of Cebu, led by June Mar Fajardo who is considered the greatest Filipino basketball player who ever lived, became the first team other than UV to win the basketball championship, the University of San Jose–Recoletos won the men's and women's volleyball championship, the University of Southern Philippines Foundation won the athletics championship. The University of Cebu also won the tennis tournament, a sport which UV has also dominated for a long time.
In 2013, a high school basketball player named Scott Aying, son of former PBA player Danny Aying, was ruled ineligible after failing to serve a two-year residency period after transferring from San Beda College to the University of San Carlos. Aying's parents sought legal action against CESAFI and the league's commissioner, Felix Tiukinhoy, Jr. Aying's parents argued that Tiukinhoy and other league officials “wrongfully interpreted the tournament’s rules and "unjustly disqualified" our son".[2] The judge later allowed the younger Aying to play, stating that Aying did not violate the league's two-year residency rule.[3][4]
In 2015, the Southwestern University was found to have fielded overaged basketball players in their high school team after it was discovered that nine of its players have submitted the tampered versions of their birth certificates. To avoid inflicting more damage to the school's name, SWU eventually pulled out all of its teams in the high school division and also considered to pull out all of its college teams but decided not to as the school is considered as a perennial contender in the seniors' division especially in the basketball championship.[5] The university had also issued an apology to the CESAFI about this incident.[6]
In 2018, University of Cebu-Lapu-Lapu and Mandaue Campus becomes the thirteenth member school to join the CESAFI tournament.[7]
Member schools
Seniors' division
There are a total of ten member schools in the seniors' division
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Nickname | Population | School colors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cebu Eastern College | Cebu City | 1915 | Private, Non-sectarian | Dragons | --- | |
| Cebu Institute of Technology – University | Cebu City | 1946 | Private, Non-sectarian | Wildcats | ~35,000 | |
| Don Bosco Technical College | Cebu City | 1954 | Private, Salesian | Greywolves | --- | |
| Southwestern University PHINMA | Cebu City | 1946 | Private, Non-sectarian | Cobras | ~13,000 | |
| University of Cebu | Cebu City | 1964 | Private, Non-sectarian | Webmasters | ~61,000 | |
| University of Cebu – Lapu-Lapu & Mandaue Campus | Mandaue City | 1995 | Private, Non-sectarian | UC–LM Webmasters | ||
| University of San Carlos | Cebu City | 1595 | Private, Society of the Divine Word | Warriors | ~27,000 | |
| University of San Jose–Recoletos | Cebu City | 1947 | Private, Augustinian Recollect | Jaguars | ~14,000 | |
| University of Southern Philippines Foundation | Cebu City | 1927 | Private, Non-sectarian | Panthers | ~18,000 | |
| University of the Visayas | Cebu City | 1919 | Private, Non-sectarian | Green Lancers | ~35,000 |
Juniors' division
There are eleven teams in the juniors' division. All ten schools in the seniors' division have a team in the juniors' division. Sacred Heart School – Ateneo de Cebu is the only school without a team in the seniors' division.
Other member schools
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Nickname | Population | School colors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cebu Doctors' University | Mandaue City | 1975 | Private, Non-sectarian | White Stallions | ~17,500 | |
| The Sisters of Mary School-Boystown | Minglanilla, Cebu | 1992 | Private, Sisters of Mary | Aloysians | 2,200 | |
| Velez College | Cebu City | 1957 | Private, Non-sectarian | Green Cougars | --- |
Events
The CESAFI sets itself apart from other Philippine inter-school leagues as aside from its sporting events, it also holds academic and cultural events, which are contested and participated by all of its member schools.[8] As of 2018, CESAFI has 15 sporting events, and 14 academic and cultural events.[9]
Sports
The league, as of 2018, has ten schools competing in 15 different sports:
Athletics
Badminton
Basketball
Beach volleyball
Chess
Dancesport
Football
Futsal
Karatedo
Lawn tennis
Swimming
Table tennis
Taekwondo
Volleyball
Weightlifting
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The league also plans to add golf, weightlifting[10] and bowling[11] in the far future. Unlike the University Athletic Association of the Philippines and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, CESAFI teams do not compete for an overall championship.
Academic and cultural events
As of the 2018 season, CESAFI has twelve schools competing in 14 academic and cultural events. These events consist of the following:[9]
- Balak/Sangka sa pulong (Poem recitation)
- Current events & general information quiz
- Declamation
- Essay writing
- Hip-hop dancing
- Impromptu speaking
- Math quiz bee
- Oration
- Robotics
- Science quiz bee
- Sudoku
- Spelling bee
- Vocal duet
- Vocal solo
CESAFI Basketball Championship
| Sport | Basketball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2001 |
| No. of teams | 20 teams (as of 2019):
|
| Most recent champion(s) |
|
| Most titles |
|
CESAFI's basketball tournament is arguably its most popular event, and is considered as one of the country's top collegiate basketball tournaments, along with the UAAP and NCAA's basketball tournaments. Below is the list of champions of the CESAFI Basketball Tournament.
List of CESAFI basketball champions
Most Valuable Players
Season
- Notes
- ^ Fajardo and Slaughter shared the MVP award in 2009.
- ^ Tournament canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[12]
Number of championships by school
| University/School | Seniors' | Juniors' | Total | Last championship |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 University of the Visayas |
13 | 7 | 20 | 2018-19 Seniors' |
 University of Cebu |
2 | 3 | 5 | 2018–19 Juniors' |
 Sacred Heart School – Ateneo de Cebu |
0 | 5 | 5 | 2019–20 Juniors' |
 Southwestern University PHINMA |
3 | 0 | 3 | 2019–20 Seniors' |
 University of San Carlos |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2015–16 Seniors' |
 Cebu Eastern College |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2010–11 Juniors' |
 Cebu Institute of Technology – University |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2009–10 Juniors' |
 University of San Jose – Recoletos |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2002–03 Juniors' |
Media coverage
Since its inception in 2001, replacing the old Cebu Amateur Athletic Association, CESAFI has received extensive coverage from the Cebu media and local and national newspapers like Sun.Star and The Philippine Star, but still lags behind in terms of its Manila-based counterparts UAAP and the NCAA in terms of publicity. Also, unlike the UAAP and NCAA, CESAFI had no national television partners. However, this changed as on its 15th season, the CESAFI went into nationwide TV coverage after signing an agreement with IBC 13 and Viva Sports. This agreement allowed the basketball, football and volleyball games to be televised on the channel.[13] For its 16th season, CESAFI and Viva Sports partnered with AksyonTV to broadcast the basketball games, which is aired every Monday to Friday from 6 to 8 p.m.[14]For its 19th season, the CESAFI is working with different student volunteers from the various member schools for the production coverage of the basketball games. The endeavour is called "CESAFI Live" and was hatched by long-time commissioner, Felix Tiukinhoy, Jr., who expressed his desire to create an environment where students are not just mere spectators. “We take CESAFI one step further this Season 19, not only by improving the environment for our student-athletes and other event contenders, but also by including more students not merely as spectators and fans, but as actual organizers and managers of various committees that make CESAFI a success,” said Tiukinhoy. All season long, the students would handling different elements of the production coverage such as camera handling, courtside reporting and annotating.
See also
- University Athletic Association of the Philippines
- National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines)
- United Central Luzon Athletic Association
- Philippine Collegiate Champions League
External links
References
- ^ Philstar.com: "...since the inception of the CESAFI in 2001."
- ^ Panerio, Jonas (September 19, 2013). "Legal battle plays out on centercourt as Cebu league hit by TRO over Aying eligibility". Spin.ph. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
- ^ Mayol, Ador Vincent; Napallacan, Jhunnex (October 2, 2013). "Judge issues order against Cesafi, says Scott Aying didn't violate league's rules". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
- ^ Manto, Mylen P. (October 2, 2013). "Court rules athlete can play in CESAFI". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
- ^ Manlosa, Rommel C. (July 29, 2015). "To save face, SWU pulls out high school squad". Sun.Star. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
- ^ Villaruel, Emmanuel (July 31, 2015). "SWU says sorry to CESAFI". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
- ^ "UCLM to join major event before Cesafi starts". Sun.Star. August 14, 2018. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
- ^ Ballesteros, Jan (August 25, 2018). "New Cesafi season unfolds, SWU wins opening game". ESPN5. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
- ^ a b Alison, Mars (November 3, 2018). "Cesafi academic and cultural events TO UNFURL NOV. 20". Cebu Daily News. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
- ^ Villaruel, Emmanuel (July 17, 2013). "CESAFI mulls adding golf and weightlifting this year". The Philippine Star. Archived from the original on August 7, 2016. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
- ^ Limpag, Mike (September 19, 2015). "Limpag: Will bowling meet Cesafi's conditions?". Sun.Star. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
- ^ a b Ochoa, Brian J.; Alison, Mars G. (May 1, 2020). "Cesafi cancels 2020 season due to COVID-19 threat". Cebu Daily News. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- ^ Alison, Mars (July 29, 2015). "CESAFI basketball to be televised nationwide for the first time". Rappler. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
- ^ "CEBU'S FIERCELY COMPETITIVE COLLEGIATE BASKETBALL LEAGUE, CESAFI, TO BE TELECAST ON AKSYON TV". Philboxing. August 1, 2016. Retrieved August 2, 2016.