Brawl-breaker Troy Rike inspires Gilas patron to pay it forward

Rappler.com

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Brawl-breaker Troy Rike inspires Gilas patron to pay it forward
A Philippine basketball team sponsor doubles Troy Rike's donation to Philippine and Australian charities

 

MANILA, Philippines – The good deed of Gilas Pilipinas cadet Troy Rike didn’t go unnoticed and it even prompted a Gilas Pilipinas team patron to do the same.

After Rike donated the incentive he received for shielding an Australian player from heavy beating, Chooks-to-Go matched Rike’s donations by giving another PHP 100,000 to the same charities. 

The 22-year-old Rike chose to split his donation to Philippine and Australian charities – the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Australia and World Vision Philippines. (READ: Gilas brawl pacifier Troy Rike donates incentive)

“Though young, Troy is showing that he is mature beyond his years,” said Chooks-to-Go president Ronald Mascariñas. “Even if he had just been here in the country for just two months, he is proving that he can be an excellent ambassador to the sport both on and off the court.”

The Filipino-American Rike protected Australia’s Christopher Goulding from an angry Filipino mob that included Gilas pool player Allein Maliksi and national team deputy coach Jong Uichico. 

His actions prompted Mascariñas to reward the Filipino-American a P100,000 incentive. But Rike opted to donate the money instead. 

“I was happy to help, but I didn’t feel right receiving money for just doing what was right,” Rike told Rappler.

Rike hopes, though, that both teams learn from the incident and move on from one of the embarrassing moments in Philippine basketball history. (READ: Gilas loses to Australia by default in World Cup Qualifiers)

“Going forward, hopefully it will do some good and other people will do the same because that is what basketball is all about –bringing people together and giving people something to cheer for. So I hope, this is a good first step to show what we are all about as a country and as a team,” said Rike.

“Players and my teammates express their regret for their actions and some Australian players have expressed their regret as well,” he added. “Obviously, both of us wish what happened would not have had happened because that is not what either country is about. We can’t take that back and the only thing we could do is move forward and do some good with that.” – Rappler.com

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