Lester Pinentel Ong is a food entrepreneur, filmmaker, stuntman, and retired competitive wushu taolu athlete from the Philippines.
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| Sport | Wushu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | Changquan, Jianshu, Gunshu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | Philippines Wushu Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Career
editPimentel made his international debut at the 1991 SEA Games where he won bronze medals in changquan and gunshu.[1][2] Years later, he became the world champion in jianshu at the 1995 World Wushu Championships.[3] The following year he also became the Asian champion in jianshu at the 1996 Asian Wushu Championships.[4] He decided to take a break from practicing wushu and focus on school graduation.
After graduating school in 1997, Pimentel decided to work as a stockbroker before going broke due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis.[5] He decided to work as a stuntman and coordinator on films with his friends and colleagues.[5] In 1999, he founded Rice in a Box, a fast-food place which serves fried rice with toppings.[5] The first location was in Pasay and has grown to over 100 franchises across the Philippines, thus Pimentel's company grew to become the Binondo Food Group.[5][6][7]
Several years later, Pimentel returned to wushu competition for the 2005 SEA Games where he won the gold medal in duilian.[8]
In 2022, Pimentel directed 'The Iron Heart' which became known for its stunts work.[9]
References
edit- ^ "SEA Games Medalists Since 1991". Philippine Olympic Committee. September 1, 2004. Retrieved November 16, 2024.
- ^ "SEA Games Medalists Since 1991". Philippine Olympic Committee. September 1, 2004. Retrieved November 16, 2024.
- ^ "1995 World Wushu Championships Results" (PDF). International Wushu Federation. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 24, 2021.
- ^ "china, philippines lead in asian wushu championships". Xinhua News Agency. Manila. November 14, 1996. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Limos, Mario Alvaro (August 31, 2023). "This martial artist built an empire when the world's economy collapsed". GMA New Media. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ Tomada, Nathalie (March 4, 2023). "Direk Lester Ong upbeat about more int'l opportunities for Philippines-made action content". The Philippine Star. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ Ong, Henry (August 29, 2023). "Financial Adviser: 5 Business Lessons Everyone Can Learn from 'Chao Fan King' Lester Pimentel Ong, Founder and CEO of Binondo Food Group". Esquire Philippines.
- ^ "WUSHU RESULTS". 2005seagames.com. November 30, 2005. Archived from the original on June 21, 2006. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
- ^ Requintina, Robert (August 15, 2023). "'The Iron Heart' director Lester Pimentel Ong: Time for award-giving bodies to honor stunt work". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved November 21, 2024.