Philippine Sports Commission chairman Patrick "Pato" Gregorio faces reporters after giving a tour of the refurbished tennis courts in the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex on January 22, 2026. Kennedy Caacbay, ABS-CBN News
MANILA -- Patrick "Pato" Gregorio will be hailed as Executive of the Year in the 2025 San Miguel Corporation-Philippine Sportswriters Association Awards Night for his dynamic work as chairman of the Philippine Sports Commission.
Along with other awardees, Gregorio will be formally given the citation on February 16 at the Diamond Hotel in Manila.
Gregorio will be in the company of two of the country’s top sports figures today in gymnast Carlos Yulo and rising tennis star Alex Eala, who are going to be feted as the Male and Female Athletes of the Year.
A one-time top hotelier and sports executive under the MVP Group, Gregorio transitioned from the corporate world to public service with ease.
First order of the day for Gregorio, appointed as country’s sports czar in the second half of 2025, was an across-the-board increase of P5,000 to the monthly allowances of national athletes and coaches.
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He also made the novel move of opening the doors of the track and field ovals at the Rizal Memorial Complex, Philsports, and the Teachers Camp in Baguio to the public in line with the PSC’s program for a healthy citizenry.
Under Gregorio’s leadership, the country also hosted major international tournaments such as the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship, the FIG Artistic Gymnastics Junior World Championships, and the FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup, emphasizing that such global sports events can turn the Philippines into a top tourism destination.
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With the belief that sports and tourism go hand in hand, the former PBA chairman and president of the Philippine Rowing Association was named head of the National Sports Tourism-Interagency Committee which was responsible for the staging of the first ever WTA 125 tournament in the country via the Philippine Women’s Open, where Eala served as the main attraction in her first major tournament in the country.
Massive renovations at the Rizal Memorial Complex including the tennis center, baseball pitch, media conference room, the PhilSports track oval, and training facilities in Baguio were also made under Gregorio’s watch.
As former POC secretary general, the eldest brother of coaches Ryan and Allan Gregorio also made sure of a harmonious working relationship between the government sports agency and the country’s Olympic governing body, identified grassroots talent outside of Metro Manila, and ensure the continuity in sports development initiatives.
And prior to his appointment to the PSC, Gregorio helped organize the return of the Tour of Luzon.
Named as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men in 2003 for Tourism Management, Gregorio also once served as the first ever executive director of the then newly-recognized Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, was secretary general of the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines, and executive vice president of the MVP Sports Foundation.