THE road to Hanoi started at the Subic Gymnasium bubble yesterday with 16 aspirants–a mix of veterans and promising collegiate players–answering the whistle in the Philippine National Volleyball Federation tryouts for the women’s volleyball team.
Jaja Santiago, to date the most successful Filipina with a championship she earned with Ageo Medics in the Japan V.League, joined fellow 2019 Southeast Asian Games veterans Aby Maraño, Majoy Baron, Mylene Paat and Eya Laure in the tryouts supervised by women’s head coach Odjie Mamon.
Among the other veterans who joined the tryouts were Iris Tolenada, Ria Meneses, Dell Palomata, while the collegiate hopefuls were Kamille Cal, Mhicaela Belen, Ivy Lacsina, Alyssa Solomon, Jennifer Nierva, Faith Nisperos, Imee Hernandez and Bernadette Pepito.
Santiago and teammates Laure and Paat were clad in their red PPE-like Chery Tiggo practice uniforms as they gamely participated in skills tests.
The participants observed protocols–with the players and coaches wearing face masks throughout the proceedings in accordance with health and safety protocols set by Dr. Raul Canlas, medical commission head of both the PNVF and the Philippine Olympic Committee.
“The federation puts the health and safety of the participants in equal footing with our goal of forming the national teams as soon as possible,” PNVF president Ramon “Tats” Suzara said, adding the teams will be fielded in the Hanoi SEA Games in November and possibly in the Asian Women’s Championships in August–in the event the Asian Volleyball Confederation awards the hosting chores to the country.
The men’s volleyball tryouts are scheduled today and the beach volleyball tryouts are set tomorrow. The participants immediately returned to Manila after the exercise on board quarantined buses.
