ACHIEVEMENTS

Asian Games

• 1962 Jakarta 4×100m Relay – Gold

• 1962 Jakarta 100m – Bronze

• 1966 Bangkok 4×100m Relay – Bronze

Hall of Fame

• 2021 – Philippine Sports Hall of Fame Inductee

BIOGRAPHY

Born on December 12, 1939, Dagupan-raised Filipino sprinter Rogelio Onofre would unknowingly hold Men’s 100m National Record for four decades.

At his young age, Onofre started competing on the streets of Dagupan, Pangasinan barefooted and aiming for prizes of P3.00 and a bottle of soda.

He started his journey in athletics primarily as a high jumper in 1957, when he competed at the Regional PRISAA, jump-starting his sports career in the international scene through the Asian Games.

His debut was in the 1958 Tokyo Asian Games, but his campaign at the 1962 Asian Games (Jakarta 1962) did it for him. Joining the Philippine Men’s Relay squad with fellow trackers Remigio Vista, Isaac Gomez and Claro Pellosis, he secured the gold in the men’s 4×100-meter and his spot for the 1960 Rome Olympics.

Despite the result of his campaign in Rome, he persevered at the 1962 Asian Games which earned him two more medals – a gold and bronze. The next edition wound up being a repeat of this feat as he bagged the bronze in the 1966 Bangkok Asian Games. Rogelio then represented the country once more in the 1964 Tokyo and 1968 Mexico City Olympics.

After retiring from his sports career, he settled in San Francisco, United States. He was inducted into the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame in 2021.