Olympian, ex-MICAA cager Bernardo dies

MANILA, Philippines - Basketball Olympian Narciso “Ciso" Bernardo passed away Tuesday, his family told GMANews.TV Tuesday night. He was 71. According to his son Noel, his father died at noon Tuesday in hospital due to cardiac arrest. Noel, a councilor of Mandaluyong City, said Bernardo has been bed-ridden since 2002 when the cager had a stroke. Bernardo, also a former councilor of the city, would be buried on Saturday. Bernardo, before his death, received several honors for being one of the top scorers during the Manila Industrial Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA) basketball tournament. He was a member of the basketball team in the 1960 Rome Olympics and the 1972 Munich Games. He was also the last coach to help the Crispa Redmanizers win a championship in 1984. In January 1998, Bernardo was among the Philippine Basketball Association’s All-Time Mythical Five of Philippine Basketball for his exploits in the 1960s.- GMANews.TV