Alex the Lion Files Libel Suit Against Philippines Billiards Congress

This in from Inquirer.net - Former World Pool champ Alex Pagulayan yesterday filed a libel suit against the Billiards and Snookers Congress of the Philippines for accusing him of "sharking" and for later withdrawing his participation in last year's Guinness 9-Ball Tour.

Sharking is a pool term for acts that disrupt and disarm one's foe, according to BSCP in a media statement last year where it explained the reason for barring the flamboyant Pagulayan from vying in a Tour leg in Shanghai. The media statement was quoted in Pagulayan's complaint which he filed at the Pasig Regional Trial Court yesterday. He was accompanied by fellow pool stars Efren "Bata" Reyes, Francisco "Django" Bustamante, Roberto Gomez and Joven Bustamante.

In a 9-page affidavit, Pagulayan said the BSCP's pronouncements last year, which accused him of sharking his Malaysian opponent in the Guinness Tour's Singapore leg, are "libelous" and have caused him "irreparable harm, injury and embarrassment."

"My complaint is they ruined my reputation," Pagulayan told court reporters in Filipino. "I've been giving honor to the country and they accuse me of something which is not true."

The BSCP, in withdrawing Pagulayan's entry in the Guinness Tour's Shanghai leg last year, said it based its decision on a finding that Pagulayan's conduct in the Singapore leg was "unworthy and unacceptable for a representative of a country that is regarded today as the epicenter of international pool."

"His antics amounted to sharking - the pool term for acts to disrupt and disarm one's opponent in order to win," the BSCP said in its media statement.

But Pagulayan argued that his actions did not constitute sharking. In fact, he said, the promoter, the organizers, and even his own opponent in that particular Singapore match did not complain about his play. "So who complained? We talked to Ibrahim Bin Amir, my opponent, and he was not complaining. ESPN and the sponsors all said there was no problem," said Pagulayan.

Bata Reyes, who is also the vice president of the Billiard Managers and Players Association of the Philippines, said, if anything, Pagulayan was just entertaining the crowd.