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Ardina one stroke off the pace in LPGA Arkansas Championship

DOTTIE ARDINA — REUTERS

DOTTIE ARDINA stayed on track in her hunt for a breakthrough title in the LPGA Tour as she ran just one shot off the pace going to the final round of the NW Arkansas Championship.

Sustaining the charge from her red-hot opening of six-under 65, Ms. Ardina followed up with an eagle-spiked 67 Saturday to vault to solo second at 10-under 132 and get in position to strike against South African leader Ashley Buhai (131 after a similar second-round 67).

Ms. Ardina’s mettle will be tested in the last 18 holes of action at the Pinnacle Golf Course as she battles Buhai and Thai Apichaya Yubol (133 after a 65) in the championship flight with outside threat from Nasa Hataoka (66), Pajaree Anannarukarn (67) and Gaby Lopez (67), who matched 133s, and a crowded group at 134.

“I think I just need to be calm and just focus on my own game,” said Ms. Ardina, who’s looking to become the season’s fourth Rolex First-Time Winner.

“I always think ‘play like a practice round’ because there is no pressure. I’m going to try to do that tomorrow (last round),” she added.

The ICTSI-backed Ms. Ardina sparked her Round 2 charge with a birdie on No. 1 before going birdie-eagle-birdie on Nos. 4 to 6 for a 31 in the front. She slowed down and dropped a shot on the 11th and 12th but got one back with a birdie on the 14th.

Ms. Ardina, who actually got one victory on her belt in the 2022 Copper Rock Championship on the Epson Tour, was the last Pinay ace standing in the $3-million, 54-hole event.

Her Paris Olympics teammate Bianca Pagdanganan missed the 140 cutline by a hairline after a one-over 72 put her at 141. Fil-Japanese Yuka Saso, representing Japan, bombed out at 147 after a 72. — Olmin Leyba

Mapua beats JRU, shares second place in NCAA 100

CLINT ESCAMIS — FACEBOOK.COM/NCAA.ORG.PH

Games on Tuesday
(Filoil EcoOil Arena)
11 a.m. – SSC-R vs CSB
2:30 p.m. – Letran vs San Beda

MAPUA continued to show it’s a legitimate title contender as it floored Jose Rizal University (JRU), 88-81, Sunday to jump back to second place in NCAA Season 100 at the Filoil EcoOil Arena.

The Cardinals drew strength from their balanced offensive with reigning MVP Clint Escamis spearheading the charge with 19 points, six of which came in the fourth quarter that helped crush the Bombers’ late resistance.

Lawrence Mangubat, Chris Hubilla, Marc Cuenco and Jeco Bancale likewise came through as they chipped in 16, 15, 13 and 10 points, respectively, as the Cardinals zoomed to No. 2 alongside the Letran Knights with identical 5-2 cards.

It was a complete show of force for the Cardinals, out to try again for that first title in more than three decades after coming close in a painful finals defeat a season ago, as they made their move early and built enough cushion to weather whatever storm the Bombers would whip up late.

And JRU did as it valiantly and furiously fought back from as big as a 23-point deficit, 42-19, that came early in the second period down to just five, 71-66, around two and a half minutes gone by the final period on a booming trey by its bull-strong captain Joshua Guiab.

It proved to be the Bombers’ last show of force as Mr. Escamis and the steel-willed Cardinals persevered in preserving the triumph.

The Bombers stumbled to 2-5. — Joey Villar


The scores:

First Game

Mapua 88 – Escamis 19, Mangubat 16, Hubilla 15, Cuenco 13, Bancale 10, Jabonete 4, Igliane 4, Concepcion 4, Garcia 3, Ryan 0, Fermin 0, Agemenyi 0, Pantaleon 0

JRU 81 -– Guiab 17, Panapanan 15, Raymundo 11,  Argente 11, Benitez 4, Garcia 4, Mosqueda 2, Barrera 2, De Leon 1, Ramos 0, Samontanes 0, Sarmiento 0, Ferrer 0

Quarter scores: 32-18; 57-41; 71-57; 88-81

Villar, Palami partner to erect a state-of-the-art Villar City Stadium for football and other sports

VILLAR GROUP Chairman Manny Villar (second from right) with All Star Properties, Inc. officials (from left) COO Misagh Bahadoran, CEO Mel Macasaquit and Chairman Dan Palami during Sunday’s memorandum of agreement signing ceremony and launch of the Villar City Stadium.

FOOTBALL and other sports will soon get a new hub at the Villar City Stadium that will rise at the heart of the sprawling Villar City in Bacoor, Cavite.

The Villar City Stadium is a state of the art facility covering 30,000 square meters designed for exciting football as well as basketball, volleyball, padel, pickleball, and badminton action, among others.

The sports hub, a collaboration between the Villar Group headed by Manny Villar and All-Star Properties, Inc. (ASPI) chaired by football godfather Dan Palami, aims to address “the long-standing issue of access to quality sports venues, offering local athletes and sports enthusiasts a world-class facility without the traffic hassles associated with traveling to the facilities in Manila.”

“We envision a facility that will house everything that is all about sports. Our kababayans (countrymen) will now have the best option rather than enduring the traffic to go to other sports venues in Metro Manila just to compete or watch international sporting events,” said Mr. Villar.

To get the ball rolling, Golden MV’s Villar City signed a memorandum of agreement with its partner All-Star Properties, Inc. recently. Leading the ceremony were Mr. Villar and director of Golden MV Holdings Paolo Villar and ASPI’s Mr. Palami, CEO Mel Macasaquit, and COO Misagh Bahadoran, a former Philippine Azkal.

“Our aim is to always help and advance the interests of Philippine sports. Building a sports hub that features all the perks of a modern and state-of-the-art facility is a most welcome way to solve one of the perennial problems of sports development here in the country,” said Mr. Palami. “The Stadium will not only be a venue but also the means to fast-track the development of several sports programs and projects in the country for many years to come.” — Olimn Leyba

Caitlin Clark wins Rookie of the Year, Napheesa Collier DPOY

INDIANA FEVER superstar Caitlin Clark is the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year, The Athletic reported Friday night.

The Athletic also reported that Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier won the league’s Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) award.

Clark’s honor was widely expected after she set multiple records in her first season in the league.

The No. 1 draft pick broke the records for assists both in a season (337) and in a single game (19). She was also the first player to record two triple-doubles in her rookie season, and her 769 total points (19.2 per game) marked the most a rookie has ever had.

The WNBA had yet to announce the awards themselves, but they appeared to be confirmed by the players Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) in a statement that targeted USA Today columnist Christine Brennan for interview questions it found unsavory.

“This week was dedicated to celebrating and amplifying A’ja (Wilson), Caitlin, DiJonai (Carrington) and Napheesa for their hard work and truly exception performances all season long,” the union’s statement began, before going on to air complaints about questions Brennan asked Carrington about accidental contact the Connecticut Sun player made with Clark during their first-round playoff series.

It had been previously revealed that Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces was the league’s MVP and Carrington won Most Improved Player.

As for Collier, the 28-year-old forward averaged 9.7 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.4 blocks per game (all career highs) to go with her 20.4 points per game in 34 starts in the regular season.

Collier also recently dropped 38 and 42 points in the Lynx’s two first-round playoff games against the Phoenix Mercury, leading a 2-0 sweep. — Reuters

Caitlin Clark’s historic season drives big WNBA ratings boost

CAITLIN CLARK’S rookie campaign might have come to an end Wednesday night, but her historic season helped drive the WNBA to its highest average game viewership in 24 years.

The league averaged 657,000 viewers per game, according to a report by the Sports Business Journal (SBJ). That included a record 22 games topping one million viewers across the WNBA’s Nielsen-rated media partners (ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ION, CBS and NBA TV), blowing away the previous league record of 15 in 1998. Of those 22, Clark’s Indiana Fever played in 19 of them.

The SBJ also reported record numbers for ESPN, which averaged 1.19 million viewers per game — a 170% increase from last season — as well as the top seven most-watched WNBA games ever on the network. ABC, meanwhile, had 2.23 million viewers for the Fever playing the Seattle Storm on Aug. 18, marking the highest viewership for an WNBA game in network history.

The WNBA All-Star Game was the most-watched WNBA event of the season with more than 3.4 million viewers tuning in on ABC. The next 12 most-watched games across networks all featured the Fever, topped by Clark playing against Chicago Sky and fellow star rookie Angel Reese, which drew 2.3 million viewers to ESPN on June 23.

How much the playoff viewership dips now that Clark’s Fever have been eliminated remains to be seen.

Indiana was eliminated in two games by the Connecticut Sun. While Game 2 viewership numbers have yet to be released, Game 1 averaged 1.8 million on ABC, making it the WNBA’s most-watched playoff game since 2000.

While viewership numbers are expected to decline with Clark’s season over, Game 2 of the Las Vegas Aces series against the Seattle Storm averaged 985,000 viewers, per Programming Insider. That was more than any of the WNBA Finals games last season, according to a report by Front Office Sports. — Reuters

WADA appeals against Sinner doping verdict

THE WORLD Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against an independent tribunal’s decision in August to clear tennis world number one Jannik Sinner of wrongdoing after he failed drug tests.

WADA said on Saturday the tribunal’s finding of “no fault or negligence” on the Italian’s part was incorrect under the applicable rules, and it would seek “a period of ineligibility of between one and two years” for the Australian Open and US Open champion.

The tribunal, organized by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), had accepted Sinner’s explanation that the anabolic agent clostebol entered his system from a member of his support team through massages and sports therapy.

Sinner, who beat Roman Safiullin on Saturday to reach the quarterfinals of the China Open, said he was surprised by WADA’s decision. Reuters

Knicks acquire Towns

When it comes to evaluating trades in the National Basketball Association, not a few quarters begin with the questions “Who is the best player?” and “Where does he land?” The answers, they believe, provide them with the best vantage point from which to identify the winning side (or sides, as the case may be). And, for the most part, they’re right. After all, marquee names are invariably the triggers for negotiations to begin, for all the ensuing gives and takes therein, and for their final outcomes.

Which, in a nutshell, is why conventional wisdom has largely praised the Knicks for their acquisition of Karl-Anthony Towns. In and of itself, the development plugs a gaping hole in their regular rotation. With the convalescence of erstwhile starter Mitchell Robinson due to injury still a question mark, the arrival of a four-time All-Star whose strengths complement the heliocentric offense head coach Tom Thibodeau has built around Jalen Brunson figures to place them in better position to contend for the title.

Needless to say, the fact that the Knicks do not have to break the bank in order to formalize the accord further underscores its attendant benefits. Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo figured to be vital cogs as they venture to improve on their conference semifinals showing in the past season, but their departure is more than offset by Towns’ presence. If there’s anything his transition from franchise cornerstone to supporting player following the ascendancy of Anthony Edwards with the Timberwolves highlights, it’s that he knows when to sublimate his ego for the greater good.

In this light, Towns will no doubt get over the shock of being shipped out quickly. And though Thibodeau wasn’t quite enamored of him during their time together with the Timberwolves, the bench tactician was nothing but complementary of him in the aftermath. And, make no mistake, the player swaps would not have happened without the go-ahead of the notoriously hands-on mentor, and, of course, of Brunson. As far as they’re concerned, he’s a missing puzzle piece, and they like the picture they see now.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and human resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Israel kills Hezbollah leader Nasrallah in Beirut, robbing Iran of top ally

REUTERS

JERUSALEM/BEIRUT — Israel killed Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in a powerful airstrike in Beirut, dealing a heavy blow to the Iran-backed group as it reels from an escalating campaign of Israeli attacks.

The Israeli military said on Saturday it had eliminated Mr. Nasrallah in the strike on the group’s central command headquarters in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday. Hezbollah confirmed he had been killed, without saying how.

Mr. Nasrallah’s death is a major blow to both Hezbollah and Iran, removing an influential ally who helped build Hezbollah into the linchpin of Tehran’s network of allied groups in the Arab world.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the killing of Nasrallah as a necessary step toward “changing the balance of power in the region for years to come.”

“Nasrallah was not a terrorist, he was the terrorist,” Mr. Netanyahu said in a statement, warning of challenging days ahead.

US President Joseph R. Biden described Nasrallah’s death as a measure of justice for what he called his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis and Lebanese, and said the US fully supported Israel’s right to self-defense.

But when asked if an Israeli ground incursion into Lebanon was inevitable, Biden told reporters on Saturday: “It’s time for a ceasefire.”

A senior member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, deputy commander Abbas Nilforoushan, was also killed in the Israeli attacks in Beirut on Friday, Iranian media reported.

Sources told Reuters that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been moved to a secure location in Iran following Nasrallah’s killing.

Iran later called for a United Nations (UN) Security Council meeting on Israel’s actions in Lebanon and elsewhere in the region. It also warned against any attacks on its diplomatic facilities and representatives.

“Iran will not hesitate to exercise its inherent rights under international law to take every measure in defense of its vital national and security interests,” Iran’s UN ambassador, Amir Saeid Iravani, said in a letter to the 15-member council.

Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed 33 people and wounded 195 others on Saturday, the Lebanese Health ministry said.

The strikes continued on Beirut’s southern suburbs throughout the early evening on Saturday, according to a Reuters live broadcast, sending large clouds of smoke over the city.

One Israeli strike hit an industrial area 500 meters (yards) from Beirut airport buildings, a security source told Reuters. The airport continued to operate normally, according to Middle East Airlines boss Mohammad al-Hout.

More than 1,000 people have been killed and more than 6,000 wounded as a result of Israeli attacks in the past two weeks, the health ministry said, and about one million Lebanese have been displaced by the strikes, including hundreds of thousands since Friday, Nasser Yassin, the minister coordinating the government’s crisis response, told Reuters on Saturday.

Israel said it killed a senior Hezbollah intelligence official in a strike on southern Beirut, naming him as Hassan Khalil Yassin. Hezbollah has made no mention of this.

In Israel, air raid sirens sounded across the center of the country — including Tel Aviv —and large bangs were heard after a missile was fired from Yemen and intercepted, according to the Israeli military.

A projectile fired from Lebanon crashed in the occupied West Bank, sparking fires, the Israeli military said. There were no casualties, according to the Israeli ambulance service.

Hezbollah said in a statement that it would continue its battle against Israel “in support of Gaza and Palestine, and in defense of Lebanon and its steadfast and honorable people.”

Iran’s Khamenei said Nasrallah’s death would be avenged and his path in fighting Israel would be pursued by other militants.

Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said his country was facing the threat of danger, without mentioning the death of Nasrallah. His office later announced three days of mourning for the Hezbollah chief.

Hezbollah and Israel have been fighting a conflict in parallel with Israel’s war against the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza since Hamas’ attack on Israel last Oct. 7, in a cross-border confrontation that has sharply escalated in recent days.

Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV aired verses from the Koran after Mr. Nasrallah’s death was announced. Bursts of gunfire were heard in Beirut and Lebanon’s army deployed tanks in the city center, according to Reuters witnesses.

The Israeli military said Nasrallah was eliminated in a “targeted strike” on the group’s underground headquarters below a residential building in Dahiyeh – a Hezbollah-controlled southern suburb of Beirut. It said he was killed along with senior Hezbollah official Ali Karaki and other commanders.

Mr. Nasrallah’s death is by far the largest blow in a traumatic fortnight for Hezbollah, starting with a deadly strike on thousands of communications devices used by its members.

Days later, Israel significantly ramped up airstrikes in Lebanon, killing several top Hezbollah commanders and hundreds of other people across wide areas of the country. 

SUCCESSION
Many Hezbollah supporters were in disbelief on Saturday.

“He was leading us. He was everything to us. We were under his wings,” one supporter, Zahraa, told Reuters tearfully by phone from a school where she had been displaced to overnight.

Hezbollah gave no immediate indication of who might succeed Nasrallah. Senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine has long been regarded as heir apparent. The group has not issued any statement on Safieddine’s status or that of any other Hezbollah leaders —apart from Nasrallah — since the attack.

Hezbollah continued its cross-border rocket fire on Saturday, setting off sirens and sending residents running for shelter deep inside Israel. Israeli missile defenses blocked some of them and there was no immediate report of injuries.

The escalation has increased fears the conflict could spin out of control, potentially drawing in Iran, Hezbollah’s principal backer, as well as the United States.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel’s war was not with the Lebanese people, calling Nasrallah the “murderer of thousands of Israelis and foreign citizens.” Mr. Gallant held talks late on Saturday about possibly expanding Israel’s military offensive on its northern front, his office said.

Mr. Biden, who had no advance warning of the strike that killed Mr. Nasrallah, said the US aimed to de-escalate the conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon through diplomatic means.

Hezbollah has said it would cease fire only when Israel’s Gaza offensive ends. Hamas and other allies of Hezbollah issued statements mourning his death.

Russia said it strongly condemned Mr. Nasrallah’s killing and urged Israel to stop hostilities in Lebanon.

LEBANON ASKS IRANIAN PLANE NOT TO LAND
Residents fled Dahiyeh, seeking shelter in downtown Beirut and other parts of the city.

“Yesterday’s strikes were unbelievable. We had fled before and then went back to our homes, but then the bombing got more and more intense, so we came here, waiting for Netanyahu to stop the bombing,” said Dalal Daher, speaking near Beirut’s Martyrs Square, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel says it has been attacking Hezbollah with the aim of allowing tens of thousands of residents evacuated from northern Israel to return home.

Lebanon’s Transport ministry asked an Iranian plane not to enter Lebanese airspace after Israel warned air traffic control at the Beirut airport that it would use “force” if it landed, a ministry source told Reuters. The source said it was not clear what was on the plane, adding: “The priority is people.”

Late on Friday, Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Israeli air force planes would not allow “hostile flights with weapons to land” there. — Reuters

Japan’s incoming PM Ishiba calls for loose monetary policy

WIKIMEDIA

TOKYO — Japan’s incoming prime minister (PM), Shigeru Ishiba, said on Sunday the country’s monetary policy must remain accommodative as a trend, signaling the need to keep borrowing costs low to underpin a fragile economic recovery.

It was not immediately clear whether Mr. Ishiba, who had been a vocal critic of the Bank of Japan’s (BoJ) past aggressive monetary easing, was taking a more dovish line with his remarks.

“It’s something the Bank of Japan, which is mandated to achieve price stability, will decide while working closely with the government,” Mr. Ishiba told public broadcaster NHK, when asked about further interest rate increases by the central bank.

“From the government’s standpoint, monetary policy must remain accommodative as a trend given current economic conditions,” he said.

On fiscal policy, Ishiba said he will aim to compile a package of measures at an early date to cushion the economic blow from rising living costs, with a focus on helping low-income households.

Ishiba, a former defense minister, is set to become prime minister on Tuesday after winning the presidency of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Friday.

After his victory, Ishiba said monetary policy would broadly remain loose but suggested he would not push back against further increases in still near-zero interest rates.

The BoJ ended negative interest rates in March and raised short-term borrowing costs to 0.25% in July in a landmark shift away from a decade-long, radical stimulus program.

BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda has signaled a readiness to raise rates further if Japan makes progress towards durably achieving the bank’s inflation 2% target, as the board projects it will.

Ishiba told Reuters in August that the BoJ was on the “right policy track” by ending negative rates and endorsed further normalization of monetary policy, saying it could boost industrial competitiveness. But in an interview this month, he said Japan must prioritize making a full exit from deflation and warned of weak signs in consumption.

The yen, which fell on Friday on news that a dovish rival would join Mr. Ishiba in a run-off for the LDP leadership, rebounded on his victory. — Reuters

Trump escalates harsh rhetoric against immigrants, rival Harris

PICRYL

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump on Saturday deployed some of his harshest rhetoric against immigrants who have crossed the border illegally and committed crimes, especially against young women, while he also escalated his personal insults against Kamala Harris.

In the battleground state of Wisconsin, Trump called Democratic Vice-President Harris, who on Friday visited the US-Mexico border for the first time in her 2024 presidential campaign, “mentally impaired” and “mentally disabled.”

The Republican presidential candidate was flanked by posters of immigrants in the US illegally who have been arrested for murder and other violent crimes, and banners saying, “End Migrant Crime” and “Deport Illegals Now.”

His speech was unusually devoted almost entirely to undocumented immigrants. He called those who had committed violent crime “monsters,” “stone-cold killers” and “vile animals.”

Mr. Trump is locked in a close race with Harris ahead of the Nov. 5 election. Immigration and the southern border are one of the top issues for voters, according to opinion polls.

Sarafina Chitika, a Harris spokesperson, said after Mr. Trump’s speech: “He’s got nothing ‘inspiring’ to offer the American people, just darkness.”

The former president blamed Ms. Harris and Democratic President Joseph R. Biden for allowing undocumented immigrants into the US, accusing some migrants of wanting to “rape, pillage, thieve, plunder and kill the people of the United States of America.”

At one point Mr. Trump admitted: “This is a dark speech.”

Mr. Trump’s speech was in the small Wisconsin city of Prairie du Chien, where a Venezuelan in the US illegally was detained in September for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman and attacking her daughter.

Some 7 million migrants have been arrested crossing the US-Mexico border illegally during Biden’s administration, according to government data, a record high number that has fueled criticism of Ms. Harris and Mr. Biden from Mr. Trump and fellow Republicans.

In her visit to the border on Friday, Harris outlined her plans to fix “our broken immigration system” while accusing Trump of “fanning the flames of fear and division” over the impact of immigrants on American life.

Ms. Harris also called for tighter asylum restrictions and vowed to make a “top priority” of stopping fentanyl from entering the US.

Mr. Trump also repeated his false claim that his 2020 election defeat to Mr. Biden was fraudulent. If reelected, and “if allowed,” Mr. Trump said he would prosecute people he blames for his loss then.

Studies generally find there is no evidence immigrants commit crimes at a higher rate than native-born Americans and critics say Mr. Trump’s rhetoric reinforces racist tropes.

Mr. Trump typically focuses on young women allegedly killed by Hispanic assailants to drive home that message, eschewing cases that involve male victims.

Mr. Trump’s opponents accuse him of cynically exploiting grieving families to fuel his narrative that foreign-born, often Hispanic, arrivals are part of an invading army.

But some of the families of the victims have welcomed Mr. Trump’s focus on the issue of violent crime and the death toll of teenagers caused by the opioid drug fentanyl, much of which crosses into the US over the southern border.

Several parents who had lost children to attacks by immigrants in the US illegally, or to fentanyl, spoke in support of him before Trump’s remarks on Saturday. — Reuters

North Korea says US military aid to Ukraine is ‘incredible mistake’

FREEPIK

SEOUL — North Korea, which has been accused of illegally supplying weapons to Russia, said on Sunday that US military aid worth $8 billion to Ukraine is “an incredible mistake” and playing with fire against nuclear superpower Russia.

US President Joseph R. Biden announced the new aid as Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Washington to help Kyiv defend itself, including longer-range weapons that will upgrade its ability to strike Russia from safer distances.

Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, said Washington is escalating the Ukraine conflict and driving all of Europe to the brink of a nuclear war.

“The United States and the West should not dismiss or underestimate Russia’s serious warning,” Kim said in a statement published by state news agency KCNA.

“Are the United States and the West really able to handle the consequences as they recklessly play with fire against Russia, which is a nuclear superpower?” she said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned he could use nuclear weapons if Russia was hit with missiles and would consider any assault against it that is backed by a nuclear power to be a joint attack.

Helping Mr. Zelensky continue a military adventure is a dangerous and irresponsible gamble and announcing the new $8 billion in military aid was “an incredible mistake and foolish act,” Kim said.

Kim, who holds a position in North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, often makes statements on Pyongyang’s position on political and security matters believed to be authorized by the country’s supreme leader.

North Korea and Russia have dramatically upgraded their ties in the past year with their leaders meeting twice and agreeing on a “comprehensive strategic partnership” that includes a mutual defense pledge.

North Korea has shipped at least 16,500 containers of weapons to Russia since September last year and Russia has fired missiles from those shipments against Ukraine, the United States has said.

Both North Korea and Russia deny any illegal arms trade. — Reuters

ISOG holds 2nd Colloquium 2024: An In-Depth Exploration of AI and Cybersecurity Advancements

The Information Security Officers Group (ISOG) held the second installment of the ISOG Colloquium 2024 on Sept. 5 at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM). Building on the success of the first event in June, ISOG organized this follow-up to meet the high demand for further learning opportunities within the cybersecurity community.

With hundreds of cybersecurity professionals in attendance, the event featured a keynote address by Col. Francel Margareth Padilla-Taborlupa, spokesperson for the Armed Forces of the Philippines and Cybersecurity Woman Leader of the Year 2023. Her address, “Preparing for the New Battle: Defending Against AI-Driven Cyberattacks,” highlighted the importance of working together to face emerging threats in the digital landscape.

“Everyone has a stake in terms of cybersecurity. All of us have our own efforts in securing our cyber domain. We want to have an umbrella unit that will marry all our cyber efforts together because there are no barriers to cyber. If each and every Filipino will be very much aware of cybersecurity, it’s like we’re holding hands to form a barrier in cybersecurity,” said Col. Taborlupa.

Guest speaker Jovelyn Hao, deputy director of the Fintech Innovation and Policy Research Group (FIPRG) and Technology Risk and Innovation Supervision Department (TRISD) at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, shared her expertise through a presentation on Machine Learning Applications Using Generative AI in Philippine Banks.

“The use of AI should be geared towards augmenting human capabilities instead of replacing them. As we continue to promote innovation in financial services, we are the ones tasked to ensure that there is a proper combination of the human and machine elements,” said Ms. Hao.

The event also served as a valuable networking platform, offering participants the chance to connect and exchange insights through a dynamic speed networking session. This activity facilitated quick, purposeful interactions among cybersecurity professionals, allowing them to share expertise, discuss emerging trends, and explore potential collaborations.

Following the networking session, participants attended a series of insightful colloquium presentations led by representatives from event sponsors. Each session showcased cutting-edge advancements in AI-driven cybersecurity, delivered by industry experts from top companies.

Featured Speakers (Titanium Sponsors)

  • Andres Capellan, Cybersecurity Sales Specialist, Cisco, “Smart Segmentation and Patching with AI”
  • Wes Dobry, VP of Sales Engineering, Eclypsium, “Securing Tomorrow: AI Innovations in Digital Supply Chain Cybersecurity”
  • Jessica Bernardo, Senior Pre-Sales Consultant, Trend Micro,  “Trend Vision One: AI-Powered, Next-Gen Cyber Risk Management”
  • Alex Hudelot, Chief Executive Officer, Theos Cyber, “AI in Action: A Case Study of Rapid Response to a Ransomware Attack”
  • Victor Bides, Security Engineer, Checkpoint, “Generative AI in Cybersecurity: Automation and Streamlining Security Administration”

Featured Speakers (Platinum Sponsors)

  • Richard Azusano, Systems Engineer, Palo Alto, “Cybersecurity in the Age of AI”
  • Derek Lok, Director for Southeast Asia, Yubico, “GenAI — Zero Trust with Modern MFA”
  • Roxan Micah Mandapat, Presales Manager, NEXTGEN Group, “De-mystifying AI for Threat Detection and Response”
  • Patrick Reyes, Solutions Engineer, Netskope, “AI at the Frontline: Enhancing Defense in Depth for Modern Threats”

Following their presentations, the Titanium Sponsors participated in a panel discussion titled “Applied AI in Cybersecurity: Does It Work?” Meanwhile, the Platinum speakers engaged in a panel discussion on “Challenges and Risks in Cybersecurity at the Onset of AI.” Both discussions were moderated by Philip Kwa, Academic Program Director for the Master in Cybersecurity at AIM.

Featured Speakers (Gold Sponsors)

  • Duc Toan Le, Technical Director, Bizsecure, “The Industry 4.0 Battleground: Why Operational Technology (OT) Needs Privileged Access Management (PAM) to Defend Against Cyber Threats”
  • Adrian Go, Senior Solutions Engineer for Southeast Asia, Cyble, “Protecting Critical Infrastructure and Ensuring Business Continuity”
  • Edwin Koh, Regional Sales Director for Southeast Asia, Edgio, “AI in Threat Detection and Mitigation”

Featured Speakers (Silver Sponsors)

  • Eugene Han, Systems Engineering Manager for ASEAN, Arista, “Empowering Networks with NDR”
  • Jennifer J. Tan, Country Manager and Regional Sales Director for the Philippines, Gigamon,”Perception vs. Observation: Seeing Beyond the Surface”
  • Joel Tian, Sales Engineer for APAC, XM Cyber, “Continuous Risk Reduction to Your OT Environment”

Invited Guest Speakers (ISOG 2022 Awardees & Industry Experts)

  • Jonathan Paz, VP, EISO and DPO, Bank of the Philippine Islands, ISOG I Am Secure Cybersecurity Excellence Awardee 2022, Cybersecurity initiatives for consumer protection
  • Jan Martin Encina, Director, Head of Information Security Governance and Operations, MAYA, and ISOG I Am Secure Cybersecurity Excellence Awardee 2022, “Transforming Fintech Process and Performance with Explainable AI”
  • Paul Prantilla, COO, Red Rock Security, “The ICS 5 Critical Controls: Protecting our ICS/OT Operations”
  • Rei Nikolai Magnaye, CISO, Equicom Savings Bank “Enhancing Human Cybersecurity Behavior Intentions with Applied AI”
  • John Paul Alarcon,CISO, The Nitsula Group of Companies,  “Safeguarding Artificial Intelligence and Its Attack Surface in the Enterprise.”

The realization of the ISOG Colloquium was made possible by the invaluable support of its sponsors, whose contributions are vital to advancing the field of cybersecurity. Notable sponsors included: Titanium Sponsors — Theos, Cisco with Trends, Eclypsium with Netsec & MDI Novare, Trend Micro with CTLink and VST-ECS, Check Point, Huawei, NMI, F5 with Westcon, Rapid7, Sophos with WSI, Fortinet with Netsec & VST-ECS, Sangfor with WSI, Netskope with NEXTGEN; Platinum Sponsors — Palo Alto with Trends & Westcon, Yubico with WSI, Vectra with NEXTGEN, Forcepoint, Tehtris, Pentera, KnowBe4, SecurityScorecard with WSI, Zscaler with Westcon; Gold Sponsors — Cyble with NEXTGEN, Edgio with WSI, Gatewatcher with Wallix and Bizsecure, Tenable with Westcon, Gytpol with Netsec; Silver Sponsors — Gigamon with Westcon, Arista with NEXTGEN, XM Cyber, and Blancco. Their collective efforts played a critical role in ensuring the event’s success.

The ISOG Colloquium 2, organized by XMS, received media coverage from BusinessWorld, Digi PH, and Back End News.

Colloquium 2 overview:

Watch out for ISOG’s grandest & most reputable cybersecurity conference of the country: ISOGx I AM SECURE 2024, happening on Oct. 2, Wednesday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., SMX Convention Center — AURA, SM Aura Premier, Taguig City. Registration is now open to the public (terms and conditions apply) https://forms.gle/MzEAomuCT2YAvRwX7.

For more information on ISOG’s events and activities, visit ISOG’s official website at www.isog.org, or follow them on social media: Facebook (ISOGPH), YouTube (ISOG SUMMIT), and LinkedIn (Information Security Officers Group).

 


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