Joaquín "Chito" Cuerva Loyzaga (born August 29, 1958) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and basketball commissioner. He is currently the Athletics Director of the

NU Bulldogs The National University Bulldogs are the collegiate men's varsity teams of National University in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines. The collegiate women's varsity teams are called the ''Lady Bulldogs'' while the high school ...

in the

University Athletic Association of the Philippines The University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), established in 1938, is an athletic association of eight Metro Manila universities in the Philippines. The eight-member schools are Adamson University (AdU), Ateneo de Manila Univers ...

. He played for the

San Beda College es, Universidad de San Beda , image = San Beda University seal.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = University Seal , latin_name = Universitas Sancti Bedæ , former_names ...

in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

before going on to play in the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

PBA career

In the PBA, Loyzaga played one game for YCO-Tanduay, then migrated to Australia for two years. He came back to play for

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

in 1983. After Toyota disbanded, Loyzaga moved to Great Taste, where he became part of the team's dynasty of four straight championships. In 1986, he was shipped to

Ginebra San Miguel Ginebra San Miguel Inc. (GSMI, ) () (formerly, La Tondeña Distillers, Inc.) is a Philippines-based diversified beverage company majority-owned by San Miguel Corporation (SMC). History La Tondeña was established in 1902 by Carlos Palanca, S ...

, where he spent all of his last eight seasons in the PBA, winning three championships. A seven-time recipient of the

Philippine Basketball Association All-Defensive Team award The Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional ...

from 1985 to 1992, Loyzaga made a name for himself as a straight-up defensive stopper, using his heft and quick hands to guard the league's best big men, including the great

Ramon Fernandez Ramon Sadaya Fernandez (; born October 3, 1953) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and current commissioner of the Philippine Sports Commission. Fernandez won four PBA Most Valuable Player awards and a record 19 PBA titles. F ...

, and later,

Alvin Patrimonio Alvin Dale Vergara Patrimonio (born November 17, 1966) is a Filipino retired professional basketball player from the Philippine Basketball Association and is the current team manager for the Magnolia Hotshots. Patrimonio holds several PBA re ...

. He retired from basketball after the

1993 PBA season The 1993 PBA season was the 19th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Board of governors Executive committee * Reynaldo G. Marquez (Commissioner) * Luis Lorenzo, Sr. (Chairman, representing Pepsi Mega Hotshots) * Wilfred Stev ...

National team career

Loyzaga also played for the Philippines men's national basketball team in the

1990 Asian Games ) , Nations participating = 36 , Athletes participating = 6,122 , Events = 308 in 27 sports , Opening ceremony = 22 September 1990 , Closing ceremony = 7 October 1990 , Officially opened by = Yang Shangkun , O ...

where he distinguished himself by helping limit North Korean center

Ri Myung Hun Ri Myung-hun (Korean: 리명훈; born 14 September 1967), also known as Michael Ri after his favorite basketball player Michael Jordan, is a North Korean former basketball player. At a height of and a weight of , he is believed to be the tall ...

despite a height discrepancy of over a foot and a half between them.

Personal life

Loyzaga is the son of Philippine basketball great Carlos Loyzaga and Vicky Cuerva. He and brother

Joey Loyzaga Ernesto Jose Francisco "Joey" Cuerva Loyzaga (born September 23, 1961) is a Filipino people, Filipino retired professional basketball player. Collegiate / Amateur career Loyzaga broke into the hoops limelight as a Red Cub for San Beda Red Lion ...

became one of the few siblings to play in the PBA, eventually playing with Ginebra San Miguel. He is married to Ma. Antonia “Toni” Yulo, with whom he has three children, namely: Celina, Jose Joaquin, and Cecilia. Yulo was executive director of the

Manila Observatory The Manila Observatory is a non-profit research institute housed on the campus of the Ateneo de Manila University in Quezon City, Philippines. It was founded by the Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuits, in 1865 as the Observatorio Meteo ...

from 2007 to 2016, and former president of National Resilience Council. In July 2022, Bongbong Marcos appointed her as secretary of the

Department of Environment and Natural Resources The Department of Environment and Natural Resources ( fil, Kagawaran ng Kapaligiran at Likas na Yaman, DENR or KKLY) is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for governing and supervising the exploration, developmen ...

. In 2002, Loyzaga became the fourth commissioner of the

Metropolitan Basketball Association The Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA), or Metroball, was a professional basketball league in the Philippines that ran from March 7, 1998, to July 26, 2002. History The MBA played its first game on March 7, 1998, at the Don Narciso Ramos ...

. He was also a commissioner and executive director of the

Philippine Sports Commission The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC, ) is an agency of the Philippine government which tackles matters concerning sports in the country. The sports agency is independent from the Philippine Olympic Committee which enjoys autonomy from the go ...

from 2010 to 2012. In 2013, he served as a basketball commissioner in the 76th Season of the UAAP. Recently, on April 9, 2015, he was appointed the Athletics Director of the National University for their

Bulldogs The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Junel Baculi Edmundo "Junel" Baculi is a Filipino head basketball coach who formerly coached GlobalPort Batang Pier in the PBA. In the PBL, he also coached the Hapee-PCU Dolphins and had many titles. Prior to coaching, Baculi played varsity basketball for t ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loyzaga, Chito Living people 1958 births Barangay Ginebra San Miguel players Filipino people of Basque descent Filipino people of Spanish descent Metropolitan Basketball Association executives Philippines men's national basketball team players Filipino men's basketball players San Beda Red Lions basketball players Power forwards (basketball) Small forwards Asian Games medalists in basketball Basketball players at the 1990 Asian Games Basketball players from Manila Toyota Super Corollas players Tanduay Rhum Masters players Great Taste Coffee Makers players Asian Games silver medalists for the Philippines Medalists at the 1990 Asian Games