This won’t sit well with aspiring athletes

- Advertisement -

IN a move that might not sit well with aspiring athletes and the local government units supporting them, some National Sports Associations intend to allow only their registered members to compete in the Batang Pinoy and Philippine National Games organized by the Philippine Sports Commission from Dec. 17 to 22.

“Some of these NSAs like sepak takraw and taekwondo would like to limit the participation in both the Batang Pinoy and PNG to only their registered athletes,” a PSC insider said of the development regarding the two sportsfests that serve as flagship projects of the government sports agency.

“This would be defeating the purpose of the PNG since it should be an ‘open’ competition for any athlete who aspires to be part of the national pool,” noted the source of the two events that have become spawning grounds of outstanding athletes for international play.

- Advertisement -

A separate source said holding the competitions exclusively for NSA members would be against the “sports for all” principle contained in Republic Act 6847 of 1990, which created the government sports agency.

The PNG, last held in Cebu in 2019, will return after an absence of nearly four years due to the pandemic, while the hybrid Batang Pinoy Nationals was held a year ago online as well in actual face-too-face competitions in Vigan, Ilocos Sur.

The playing dates were chosen so they will be held during the Christmas break of the youths.

Sources said around 17,000 athletes and officials are set to take part in both meets, with the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex and Philsports Complex in Pasig city as the main hubs of the five-day competitions opening on Dec. 17 at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

Lined up for both sportsfests are archery, arnis, athletics, badminton, basketball (3×3), boxing, chess, cycling, dancesport, chess, football, both 11-a-side and five-a-side; gymnastics, judo, karate, kickboxing, lawn tennis, muay thai, pencak silat, sepak takraw, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, beach volleyball, weightlifting, wrestling and wushu.

Author

- Advertisement -

Share post: