The Olympic Games is about to begin in Paris from July 26-August 11; the Paralympics on August 28, also in Paris. For the first time, a bumper crop (28 in both competitions) of Filipino athletes are participating and some actually have a path to winning. Watch out for these names: EJ Obiena (pole-vaulting), Eumir Marcial (boxing), Carlos Yulo (gymnastics- men), and Kayla Noelle Sanchez (swimming).

2024 marks 100 years of Philippine participation in the Olympics and PF Correspondent Myles Garcia, a member of the International Society of Olympic Historians, gives us a brief history. The country's medal haul, however, is meager: 2 golds and a smattering of bronzes in the Olympics, and 1 medal in the Paralympics. Let's hope Paris will work its magic on our athletes in this year's games.

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Van Cliburn is arguably one of the greatest pianists that ever lived, a rock star in the classical music world with sold-out concerts worldwide, screaming fans and a ticker tape parade in New York City that dwarfed those of beauty queens and sports champions. In the 1970s, during the martial law years of Marcos the first, Van Cliburn was a mainstay in the multinational coterie of first lady Imelda. Read cultural writer Pablo Tariman's account of this great pianist's Philippine connections.

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There are more than 8,000 Filipinos living in beautiful Victoria, British Columbia in Canada and the community mounts one of the most colorful and collaborative celebrations for Victoria Day and Philippine Heritage Month (June, as declared by the Province of British Columbia). Fil-Can writer Megen Quigley reports.

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Continuing our recurrent feature on the Bridge Generation of the Fil-Am community, the generation's chronicler Peter Jamero features Joe Talaugon, born in 1930, raised and settled in California. Joe's mother was Chumash Indian and he is active in both the Fil-Am and Native American communities.

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We round up this issue with an op-ed piece by author/educator/activist Walden Bello on the high-stakes political divorce of the Marcos dynasty of the north and the Duterte dynasty of the south.

[Video of the Week] Stockton Museum Showcases Filipino American Heritage