By Nick Giongco
Southeast Asian Games member countries will get a sneak-peek into what the Philippines’ hosting of the 2019 edition of the biennial sportsfest would be like when the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) stages a two-day meeting in mid-May involving the sports leaders of all 11 nations.
POC secretary-general Patrick Gregorio said the May meeting will be the first of three that Manila will host as it gets ready to host the SEAG next year.
Gregorio said the initial meeting will be more of an introductory affair given that the POC has a new set of leaders.
But it will be the perfect opportunity for the host to reveal what sports and events will likely be played during the Nov. 30-Dec. 9 SEAG.
“The sports and events will be laid out but it won’t be finalized until November, that’s one year before the 2019 SEAG,” said Gregorio.
“The November meeting will be hte most important because by that time, the number of sports and events would already be decided,” he said.
Newly-elected president Ricky Vargas has been holding regular meetings with the organizing committee headed by Foreign Affairs secretary Alan Peter Cayetano and the Philippine Sports Commission and POC chairman Bambol Tolentino the past couple of weeks.