MANILA, Philippines –Gilas Pilipinas forward Marc Pingris and his family were already planning to fly to France for a long overdue vacation to visit his French father when he was invited to be part of the national pool last year.
Pingris could not pass up the once-in-a-blue moon invitation and was glad that his family and especially his father Jean Marc, Sr. fully backed him up on his decision.
“Minsan lang kasi mangyari ‘to,” said Pingris referring to the opportunity to play for the country.
“Kinausap ko ang daddy ‘nun and okay naman siya. Ang sabi nga niya ‘nun eh it’s okay. Don’t worry about me, I can visit you in the Philippines next year [this year] or if you qualify for the world championships I’ll watch you in Spain,” added the San Mig Coffee forward, recalling his conversation with his father.
One year later, the shelved father-and-son reunion is finally going to happen.
“Magkikita kami ni dad sa Aug. 13,” Pingris told Philstar.com on Wednesday night (Thursday Manila time) shortly after they arrived in Spain.
It will be worth the wait since Jean Marc, Sr., who hails from Normandy, France, will have a treat watching his son Marc and the rest of Gilas play their national team, who will be without San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker, in a tuneup game on Aug. 15 in Antibes.
“Sobrang saya ko at excited kasi matagal din kaming hindi nagkita ni dad, mga 2 to 3 years na,” Pingris said. “Pero ang focus ko ay sa laro muna.”
Pingris’ father and his relatives in France will also join Pingris in Vitoria, Spain and stay there until the FIBA World Cup tournament proper.
“Nag-rent si daddy ng bahay sa Vitoria para sa family namin. Sila Danica, Mommy D at mga kids susunod naman sa Aug. 27,” said Pingris.
The younger Pingris doesn't mind that he hasn’t taken a much deserved long vacation from basketball in almost two years – four straight PBA championships, silver medal run in the FIBA Asia Men’s Championship and now the FIBA World Cup and next month's Asian Games in South Korea.
Pingris couldn’t complain because he’s enjoying the view on top and the best of both worlds – playing for the country and at the same time sharing this once-in-a-lifetime experience with his family.
“Sobrang nagpapasalamat ako kay God dahil sa opportunity na ‘to. Sobrang blessing ‘to para sa akin,” Pingris said. “Kung ano ang ipinapakita ko sa PBA, mas dodoblehin ko pa para sa family ko, para sa bayan.”