By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Philippine Sports Commissioner Mon Fernandez has been working with various agencies and officials who can help them get the approval that will allow Southeast Asian Games-bound athletes to resume training.
Fernandez, who was appointed as the country’s chief of mission to the biennial meet slated in Vietnam two years ago, said they have been discussing with the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) on how to resume formal training.
“We are working on it,” Fernandez said.
So far only athletes seeking berths to the 2021 Tokyo Olympics as well as qualifiers were allowed by Inter-Agency Task Force to train in a bubble-type setup in Calamba, Laguna
Currently training at the Inspire Sports Academy are members of the taekwondo, karatedo and boxing teams. They will train there for 90 days.
The government sports agency is also closely coordinating with a number of sports associations that have already proposed training arrangements. But at the moment, no approval from the IATF has been made except for Olympic-bound athletes and those who wished to qualify.
PSC’s National Training Director Marc Velasco said all training activities must be in close coordination with the POC and must be approved by the PSC to ensure that health and safety protocols are in place.
“We want to field a competitive team for all scheduled Games. We know how important it is to resume formal training. However, we also find ourselves in unique times at the moment and we work on what we can and are allowed to do,” Velasco said.
