Travel Trends in 2022 - Year of discovering awe in the vast outdoors and travelling closer to home.

NAGOYA, Japan — Alexandra “Alex” Eala is prioritizing representing the Philippines at the Asian Games over the WTA Tour for the moment — even if that means risking a fine from the women’s tour. Eala had to withdraw from the China Open in Beijing — a mandatory WTA 1000 event — to compete at the Asian Games. She could be fined $10,000. “It was a decision I didn’t take lightly,” Eala told SNTV after winning her second-round match at the Asian Games. “Of course, it’s difficult to miss out on a 1000, especially Beijing, where I’ve heard so many great things about the tournament and I have yet to go. But I know there will be many chances to go back, and I’m really excited to be here, to represent my country and to compete.” The 18th-ranked Eala beat Patcharin Cheapchandej of Thailand, 6-1, 6-0, on Monday. Eala took bronze medals in singles and mixed doubles (with partner Francis Alcantara) at the 2023 Asian Games and is a favorite for gold this time. “I’m as eager as anybody and maybe even a little more,” she said. “I have a lot of will to compete, a lot of will to win.” Eala upset defending champion Iga Swiatek on Center Court in the third round of Wimbledon this year and then earned her first WTA Tour title in Washington. She reached the third round of the US Open. Eala next faces Joanna Garland of Taiwan in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Nagoya mayor sayssorry for Asian Gamesinconveniences’ Nagoya’s mayor apologized to athletes on Wednesday for “inconveniences” at the Asian Games in the Japanese city following a string of complaints. The continent’s biggest sporting event has been dogged by problems including a shortage of beds and issues with transport. There are over 17,000 athletes and officials, more than the Olympics, and countries have accused local organizers of mismanagement. “We must offer our apologies to the athletes and others affected by these inconveniences,” said Mayor Ichiro Hirosawa, who is also acting chairman of the local organizing committee. “We must sincerely reflect on the mishandling that occurred,” he added. “There were human errors and a lack of communication with the national teams. “We are responding based on what has happened.” Unlike past Games, there is no athletes’ village in a bid to save money, with participants instead sleeping in temporary wooden units, on a cruise ship and in hotels. Some teams have complained about the temporary cabins, even saying the beds are too short. Early in the Games, local organizers apologized to South Korea after the North Korean national anthem was played by mistake. There have been issues with buses for athletes not running when they should, not turning up at all or going to the wrong venues. Some athletes were also stranded for hours at the airport when they landed in Nagoya for the start of the Games on Sept. 19. The Games, which are taking place in Nagoya and Aichi prefecture, end on Sunday.

CAMDEN, New Jersey — The answers Anfernee Simons gamely tried to offer about the first day of 76ers training camp were suddenly drowned out by the furious whirring overhead of a helicopter leaving the team’s complex. LeBron James’ helicopter. James indeed used the rotorcraft for the rich to take him after practice from New Jersey to presumably close to wherever he decided to live in New York. The helicopter noises are usually reserved for when billionaire team owner Josh Harris lands at the complex for the NBA Draft or a major news conference. Not anymore. The Sixers were quickly caught in the whirlwind of the first days of the LeBron Effect, even as a pair of players and coach Nick Nurse professed all was good on the court. Off the court, make room. Sixers staff moved the news conference backdrop from a corner where a few dozen reporters are usually stuffed to shout questions at Joel Embiid or Tyrese Maxey to a spot closer toward midcourt for a roomier feel for the more than 50 credentialed reporters, bloggers, TV camera operators and more that came to get an early report card on James’ official first day as a Sixer. James was gone on Tuesday by the time the media was allowed on the court to watch practice. Embiid, Maxey, former Boston star Jaylen Brown, they were all absent, too, a day after holding court on media day. Nurse is starting his fourth season as coach of the Sixers. He’s used to handling the demands that come with working in a major market and dealing with star players in Philly such as with Embiid and his daily injury report or the high drama that surrounded former Sixer James Harden. Nurse did say he had conversations with the team about looking out for each other and staying connected while navigating a spotlight season — especially early — that already has a postseason-type of aura around the franchise before the Sixers even played a game. “It is going to be different,” Nurse said. “More people, more eyes, more stories, more national TV. All that kind of stuff. It’s the same, just a little more. I’m just trying to get to the practice floor and to the game floor. If we can do those two things, all that other stuff, we’ll just kind of handle it as smoothly as we can.”

NEW YORK — Cam Schlittler baffled Boston batters and Ben Rice blasted two home runs to spark a New York Yankees triumph on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila), while Pope Leo XIV sent support to his hometown Chicago White Sox ahead of their Major League Baseball (MLB) playoff victory. Atlanta’s Austin Riley delivered a triumph with a three-run homer, and San Diego thrashed the Chicago Cubs, as the MLB postseason began with best-of-three wildcard series openers. At New York, Rice smashed a grand slam and a solo homer while right-hander Schlittler mystified the Red Sox, striking out 10 while allowing only two hits over 6 1/3 scoreless innings in a masterpiece 9-0 shutout. “Just thrilled it left the yard to get four runs,” Rice said of his grand slam. “This is what you dream about, Yankees-Red Sox playoff game in New York.” The Yankees, missing slugger Aaron Judge due to a calf strain, saw Rice homer in the fifth, single home a run in the seventh and smash a bases-loaded homer in the eighth. Austin Wells drove in two runs, Luis Garcia plated a run hitting into a double play, and Schlittler threw a career-high 117 pitches to silence Red Sox hitters. New York leads the American League series, 1-0, with the winner facing Tampa Bay. The White Sox, of whom the pope is a lifelong fan, beat Houston, 6-3. A social media post by the White Sox showed an inspirational letter received on Tuesday from the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics. “I willingly invoke the Almighty’s abundant blessings upon you and your loved ones,” the pope wrote to White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf. Divine intervention or not, the White Sox dominated. Sam Antonacci put the White Sox ahead to stay by scoring on Munetaka Murakami’s first-inning sacrifice fly. Antonacci added a two-run single in the second, Colson Montgomery hit a solo homer in the fourth and Chase Meidroth’s bases-loaded single in the fifth made it 5-0. Houston’s Nelson Velazquez smacked a two-run homer in the fifth and each team added a run on an error to create the final margin. After the victory, the White Sox posted, “Abundantly blessed.” “We’ll take it,” White Sox manager Will Venable said. “The pope having our back and supporting us means a lot.” In the National League, Riley’s homer in the eighth inning gave the host Braves a 5-3 victory over Philadelphia. Trailing 3-2, Atlanta won after Michael Harris singled, took second base after Ozzie Albies was hit by a pitch ahead of Riley smashing a home run to right field off Phillies relief pitcher Jhoan Duran.

Alexandra Eala is among Time Magazine"s “TIME100 Next 2026: The World"s Most Influential Rising Stars.”

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala called out a fan who threw a white cap as she was exiting the court following her match at the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan. In a video circulating on social media, Eala was seen walking off the court when a man suddenly threw a white cap to get the Filipina player's autograph. Eala was clearly displeased by the gesture. She stopped walking immediately to pick up the cap and addressed the fan, telling him not to throw items at players and to ask politely instead if he wants an autograph. "Sir, you shouldn't throw things at players. You say it nice and I will sign for you, but please don't throw things, okay?" Eala said. (“Sir hindi ka dapat nagtatapon ng mga gamit sa player. You say it nice and I will sign for you pero huwag kang magtatapon please?”) Despite the incident, she eventually signed the cap and handed it back to the man. The fan then apologized for his behavior, saying, "Sorry. Sorry. Thank you, Alex.” TMT

Vietnamese athletes won 20 gold, nine silver and one bronze medal to finish first overall. Malaysia placed second with six gold, 17 silver and three bronze, followed by Singapore with three gold, one silver and six bronze.

After donning national team colors in the 2026 Asian Games for the Gilas Pilipinas 3x3 Basketball Team, Koji Buenaflor is back in University of Santo Tomas gold, contributing to his team"s 98-87 win over the University of the East.

The Philippine Blu Girls continued their impressive run at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, with a dominant 10-0 victory over Singapore in women's siftball on Sept.30 at the Anjo Softball Ground. This is the third consecutive win for the Philippines, which opened the tournament with back-to-back losses against Japan and Chinese Taipei. The Cebuana Lhuillier-backed Blu Girls rebounded with convincing wins over Korea, Thailand and Singapore to raise their win-loss record to 3-2. The winning streak keeps the Philippines in contention for a podium finish as the preliminary round enters its crucial final stretch. Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines (Asa-Phil) president Jean Henri Lhuillier hailed the team's sustained response after its challenging start inthe tournament. “Three straight wins show the character and determination of this team. What is encouraging is that we are seeing contributions from across the lineup, backed by strong pitching and defense," said Lhillier, who is also predident and CEO of Cebuana Lhuillier. "The Blu Girls understand what is at stake, and we are proud to see them continue fighting for every opportunity to bring honor to the Philippines. We remain behind them all the way as they pursue our goal of a historic Asian Games medal." Ahead of the Asian Games, Lhuillier expressed confidence in the team's growth and reiterated his support for its pursuit of the Philippines' first Asian Games softball medal. The Blu Girls overwhelmed Singapore with a balanced offensive attack, collecting 13 hits in the shortened four-inning contest. Skylynne Kopia Ellazar went 3-for-3 with an RBI and two runs, while Mylia Isabel Perez delivered two hits, two RBIs, and two runs. Nicole Adra Hammoude added two RBIs and scored twice, while Alyssa Marie Daniell also drove in two runs. Francesca Altomonte and team captain Ma. Charlotte Sales each contributed an RBI, with Ma. Angelu Gabriel adding two hits and a run as the girls consistently found ways to get runners on base. The Philippine pitching staff was just as commanding, holding Singapore to one hit and zero runs.

Tennis star Alex Eala and Olympic medalist Carlo Paalam bannered the Philippines" campaign in the 2026 Asian Games as their wins assured them of medals in the continental multi-sport event.

MANILA, Philippines -- Filipino netters Alex Eala and Shaira Rivera bowed out of the 20th Asian Games women's doubles after falling to the Chinese duo of Jiang Xinyu and Yang Zhaoxuan, 5-7, 2-6, in the second round at the Nagoya City Higashiyama Park Tennis Center in Japan Wednesday evening. Eala and Rivera defeated Hong Kong rivals Lai Ching Laam and Liu Kallista, 6-1, 6-3, in the first round on Tuesday. Riviera sees action in more event as she teams up with Francis Alcanra in the mixed doubles. Eala shifts all her focus to the singles play where she faces Wang Xiyu in the semifinals.

NAGOYA, Japan — Alex Eala is closing in on two goals. The tennis gold medalist at the Asian Games gets an automatic berth into the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. A two-for-one deal. The Philippines' Eala reached the semifinals on Wednesday after defeating Joanna Garland of Taiwan 7-5, 6-0. Eala will next face Wang Xiyu of China on Thursday. The winner advances to Friday’s final. “The Olympics is a dream for me to be able to compete there, to represent my country," Eala said. "So, yeah, let’s see how it goes.” She took bronze medals in singles and mixed doubles with Francis Alcantara at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, and is a favorite for gold this time. In order to compete in the Asian Games, Eala had to withdraw from the China Open in Beijing — a mandatory WTA 1000 event. She could be fined $10,000. She said she's not aware of any official notice from the WTA. “I want to say that it’s easy for people to relate to wanting to represent their country and wanting to play these types of Olympic Games,” Eala said. She indicated other players have recognized the conflict and supported her. One seems to be Zhang Shuai of China, No. 57 on the WTA rankings. Eala is No. 18. “It is incredible that the two competitions are in the same weeks," Zhang said. “Some of the previous competitions have been like this. Last week, the Billie Jean King Cup was in the same week as the Singapore and Seoul competitions. “That’s life," Zhang added. "If two things are very important to you, or if they’re both very important tournaments, you can choose one of them." Eala has made her choice.

The pair of Alex Eala and Shaira Rivera ended its campaign in the 2026 Asian Games women"s doubles after falling to China"s Jiang Xinyu and Yang Zhaoxuan, 7-5, 6-2, on Wednesday in Japan.