AWARE that she’s one of the country’s greats in the sporting scene, Filipina tennis sensation Alex Eala is filled with gratitude to accept the Athlete of the Year (AOY) honors of the Philippine Sports Association (PSA) Awards with two-time Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo.
For the first time in 22 years, the PSA has named co-Athletes of the Year since boxing legend Manny Pacquiao and golfer Jennifer Rosales in 2004.
Both history makers, Eala expressed how she’s grateful to share the award with gymnast icon Yulo.
“I am so honored to be co-athlete of the Year, alongside Carlos Yulo, who is such an icon, an iconic person, and who has done a lot for Philippine sports,” she told the media.
“Of course, the two gold medals are too historic. So just to be in that same space as him and to be in that community, it’s a big honor for me,” she shared. “You know, I’m so grateful for the award, and I also want to congratulate Caloy.”
Eala’s run in the 2026 Philippine Women’s Open, the first-ever WTA 125 event in the nation, has come to an end after bowing to Colombia’s Camila Osorio in the quarterfinals last Thursday.
She now shifts her focus to the 2026 Abu Dhabi Open, where she secured a wild card entry in the main draw.
“I’ve had better days, but it was just how it is. I have to accept it, and there’s always next week,” she said. Overall, Eala assessed that having a WTA 125 event in the Philippines is a wake-up call.
“To have a WTA here is a great stepping stone. I think it is wake up call for the people who can help or be able to do something about it. I think there’s a lot of room of improvements instead of just having two professional tournaments for women,” she shared after bowing to Osorio.
“There’s a huge margin of improvement there. Filipinos are hardworking and super passionate, so I am sure if we nourish our tennis players, slowly we can build more and more champions,” she added.
The 20-year-old star became the first-ever Filipina to crack into the Top 50 of the WTA world rankings, reaching a career-high of World No. 49.
