CHICAGO - Charles Tiu was on top of his game, taxiing on the runway to PBA coaching success.
And then swiftly, unexpectedly, he grounded himself, turned all the lights and the engines off, leaving the Converge FiberXers days after the team was eliminated from the PBA Commissioner's Cup by Rain or Shine.
For months, sources said, there have been rumblings of internal strife among the stakeholders at Converge. And while Tiu admits he doesn't "see eye-to-eye" with some colleagues, it's not the main reason why he's packing his bags.
READ Tiu stays with CSB amid talks of taking Converge job full time
"I want to spend more time with my wife and start a family. I want to play more golf and drink more wine. I also want to help my dad with the family business," he told me in a telephone interview on Wednesday night.
In other words, the amiable coach Charles is lifting a page from Elizabeth Gilbert's 2010 best-selling book: Eat, Love, Pray.
ANOTHER CHAPTER.
"I just want to thank Boss Dennis Uy for the opportunity," he said before he embarks on a new chapter.
Tiu had been on this crossroads before when he left the Meralco coaching staff in 2023 to lend a hand on several family-owned businesses that include Discovery Boracay, a five-star beach hotel in an island paradise.
It's because of more or less the same reasons that he left the Converge job.
"When boss Frank and boss Jacob Lao asked me to help Converge, I always knew it was going to be a short-term thing to help prepare the team when Gov. Delta Pineda will coach," Tiu explained.
And now he leaves with a full measure of satisfaction that he had done exactly what he was tasked to do.
"Charles has done a good job bringing an independent team respectability and into contention. He's had a lot of experience and really isn't a young coach anymore. No question about his love for the game and his work ethic - two very big reasons for the success he's had over the past decade," Ateneo coach Tab Bladwin, a close friend of Tiu, said.
STAYING AT SGA AND BENILDE.
Tiu also has some successes in the NCAA where he recently led the College of St, Benilde Blazers to two straight Finals appearances. And he made a name for himself overseas where he led Strong Group Athletics (SGA) to the 43rd Jones Cup title last September and impressive back-to-back showings at the Dubai tournament..
Because the Benilde and SGA tournament schedules are seasonal and easier to plan for, Tiu will keep both posts for now,
As for a return to the PBA, his former boss, Norman Black believes Charles will be back sooner than later.
"Charles is a very talented young coach who relates well with the younger players in his team, I'm sure he'll get another opportunity,"
For now, though, the league's loss is a windfall for coach Charles loved ones.
At age 36, Charles is the youngest, the only one below 40, to coach in both the PBA and NCAA.
He's young and soon to be restful.
Here's hoping that he finds the happiness he seeks.
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