Gasol cancels Manila trip

Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol would’ve flown from Barcelona to Manila as a celebrity endorser of the Starkey Hearing Foundation and arrived here tomorrow to do volunteer mission work.

But early yesterday, a representative from the Los Angeles sports agency Wasserman Media Group informed event organizer Chao Chuatico-Espaldon of East-West Private that Gasol couldn’t make the trip after all. Espaldon, a Filipina marketing specialist, had arranged for the Gasol tour for Minnesota billionaire Bill Austin, a prime mover of the Starkey Hearing Foundation. It was Espaldon and her East-West Private partner Patty Scott who brought in a team of NBA All-Stars, including Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant, to play a two-game exhibition series here last July. Espaldon and Scott are based in Cincinnati, Ohio.

“It was all arranged,” said Espaldon in an overseas phone call from Cincinnati. “We’d gotten plane tickets for Pau and his girlfriend Sylvia. We also bought tickets for them to watch the Azkals game against the LA Galaxy on Saturday. Pau was excited to go to the Philippines. He’s a perfect fit to be a celebrity endorser for the Starkey Hearing Foundation which is in the process of producing a 13-episode docu-series showing different high-profile individuals attending to the hearing-impaired all over the world.”

Durant was the early choice to endorse the Foundation but couldn’t confirm a schedule because of a prior commitment to play in Macau. Gasol, whose boyhood ambition was to become a doctor, volunteered for the job when he heard about it.

Among the celebrities endorsing the Foundation are former US President Bill Clinton, the Dalai Lama and pop singer Miley Cyrus.  “The Foundation invites celebrities and global icons to travel to different countries like Haiti, Mauritius, India and Madagascar to attend to those who are hearing-deficient and provide them with hearing aids,” explained Espaldon. “If it’s Miley Cyrus, then the idea is for people to hear her music. If it’s a sports star, the idea is to bring the people to a game and give them the chance to listen to the roar of the crowd. It’s a wonderful advocacy with the slogan ‘so the world may hear.’”

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The Foundation aims “to change the social consciousness of hearing through education and research while providing the gift of hearing to those in need around the world.”

Espaldon said East-West Private, which specializes in branding work for celebrity athletes and wealth management, has close relations with the Wasserman Media Group and it made contacting Gasol easy. The Wasserman Media Group also represents stars like Derrick Rose, Joe Johnson, JaVale McGee, Russell Westbrook, Rudy Fernandez, English football star Wayne Rooney and Australian golfer Jason Day.

Espaldon said Gasol cancelled out because he is required to be physically present for the Lakers players’ vote on the lockout situation in Los Angeles on Saturday. Instead of flying from Barcelona to Manila, his itinerary will now show Los Angeles as the destination. 

“Derek Fisher has asked for all the Lakers to be in Los Angeles on Dec. 3 to be physically present for the players vote,” said Espaldon in a text message to Talk ‘N’ Text coach Chot Reyes who would’ve hosted Gasol in Manila as executive director of the MVP Sports Foundation. “We tried to save the situation but it’s now definitely a no-go. I apologize but it looks like Pau will not be able to go to Manila after all.”

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Meanwhile, officials of the Starkey Hearing Foundation are scheduled to arrive in Manila from the US today. They will confer with TAO Group president and philanthropist Julio (Jun) Sy on areas of mutual concern. The TAO Group is involved in commodity trading, nationwide distribution of Nokia mobile phones, real estate development and health care, among others. Sy is a known supporter of the Philippine national basketball development program.

Gasol, 31, is a 7-foot, 250-pound NBA veteran who has led Spain to back-to-back victories in the European championships. He played seven years for the Memphis Grizzlies then the last four with the Lakers. Gasol saw action on the Lakers title teams of 2009 and 2010. The seven-time European Player of the Year was on the Spanish squad that captured the FIBA world title in 2006. 

Fil-Spanish striker Angel Guirado of the Azkals was lined up to meet with Gasol in case the trip pushed through. “It would’ve been quite an experience for Angel because Pau is one of his heroes,” said Guirado’s manager and cousin Rafa Garcia. “I’m sure there will be a next time.”