Kat Tan is as inspirational a story as they come. The former Jr. Archer fondly called “The One-Armed Mamba” never let losing her left arm stop her from reaching for her dreams.
“She can do more things with just her one arm than I can with both of mine,” shared Dr. Tiger Garrido through chuckles in the latest episode of the University Avenue webcast hosted by Migs Bustos.
Garrido, a renowned orthopedic surgeon, has worked closely with Tan, now also trying her hand in coaching. How did he garner the trust of the very lady who had once impressed Kobe Bryant?
It’s all founded upon the fact that they were both reared and raised inside the gates along University Avenue.
For Tan, Zobel was where she lost her arm, but then got the heart to continue no matter what. For Garrido, it gave him the fuel for his already burning fire to become a doctor.
“I did try a lot of sports when I was in Zobel, but I didn’t think that being a pro athlete was gonna be a thing for me,” he shared. “I had asthma so I was always in the hospital growing up, that put in my head that I wanna be a doctor. Being in La Salle with its sports tradition, I also wanted to do something related to sports.”
“So Zobel really pushed me to be in the field I wanna do,” he continued.
Along with that push, Zobel also gave Garrido and his fellow alumni sports medical professionals the tools to be able to make a difference in athletes’ lives.
One such is Erwin Valencia, presently the team physical therapist and wellness lead for the New York Knicks. Safe to say, he played a part in putting an end to an eight-year playoff drought.
That was New York’s dream, however, and not necessarily his own. For Valencia, just being part of a team is already him living his dream.
“I was 18, just about to graduate high school, and I’ll never forget this, I woke up one morning with an amazing dream,” he narrated. “I saw the arena with all the lights and cameras, heard music and cheers and boos, and even smelled cologne from coaches beside me. From then on, I said, ‘That’s it. That’s the dream.'”
While he was giving an assist to the Knicks’ return to relevance, it was the faraway school tucked inside Ayala Alabang that gave him an assist in terms of allowing him to make a crystal clear connection with his future clients.
When he was yet to blossom into the man he is today, he was a taekwondo black belt as well as a basketball and football player, dabbling in whatever sport there was in Zobel. He even got into track and field, javelin, and shotput – all for that varsity jacket.
“Ganun naman dati e, ‘di ba?” he joshed. “You wanted that jacket real bad.”
Still, all that not only deepened his love for sports, but also earned him experience as a multi-sport athlete.
“It’s not only important to understand the knowledge and wisdom of sports medicine, but also to be it (athlete). I think, pros have met, seen, and heard everything,” he detailed. “The only way they can trust you is being yourself. I had the ability to really represent myself because of the background I had.”
Garrido, for his part, could only share the same sentiment.
“Not only playing, but having the injuries as well,” he remarked. “I understand the treatment, how much effort you have to put into it to be okay and be okay to play. Being an athlete as well helps me relate to the athletes I handle.”
Dr. Tiger Garrido and physical therapist Erwin Valencia, former athletes who donned the green and white, are now helping current athletes by taking care of their health and wellness. All of it, made possible by Zobel.
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The pasture isn’t always greener on the other side. In fact, it’s the greenest along University Avenue. Continue catching all our episodes on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/delasalle.zobel) and also follow us on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dls_zobel).
