????The Philippines’ De La Salle University standout Jeron Teng was voted the favorite Asian sports star at the 2016 Nickelodeon Asia Kids’ Choice Awards on Monday, beating other athletes from Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. ????Teng, the lone Filipino athlete nominated, was announced as the winner during Monday’s ceremony. ????Teng, a former UAAP Rookie of the Year and Finals MVP, beat out Malaysia diver Pandelela Rinong, Indonesia soccer player Kim Kurniawan, and Singaporean footballer Irfan Fandi. ????“Wow! Thank you so much guys. I wanna thank everyone who supported and voted for me. ????“And I just feel really blessed right now, and I just hope for the kids to ... I hope I can inspire them to be a student-athlete like me. And God bless everyone,” he said. ????Born on March 21, 1994, Teng is a small forward for the De La Salle Green Archers in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). ????He was more interested in watching wrestling than basketball on TV when he was a boy. His father Alvin, a former Philippine Basketball Association cager, taught him the basics of the game. ????“Alvin spent two months every day one summer when Jeron was 10 teaching him how to play,” recalled Teng’s mother Susan. “He was embarrassed that his son was a benchwarmer on his school team so he wanted to make sure he would play the game right. I think Jeron learned a lot that summer and he became a star player in high school.” ????Teng is also a TV celebrity in his home country. He made his acting debut on the Philippines’ top-rating weeknight series “Got to Believe” (as collegiate basketball superstar Allen Chua). He is also in the cast of “Kubot: The Aswang Chronicles 2” (2014), sequel to “Tiktik: The Aswang Chronicles” (2012). ????(SD-Agencies) | 