Real sports development

Accusations of “basketball terrorism” hurled by the opposition in the city against the ruling Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) speak volumes about the sad state of sports in the country.

I am not going to discuss who are right or wrong in the battle for “basketball boards billing” but I feel very bad to know that until today we haven’t really moved forward about how we try to develop sports.

Politicians seem to think that if you talk sports development, it is putting up basketball courts. 

The reason of course is obvious, basketball courts provide a year-round venue for campaigning as the floor and the backboards can be painted with the names of the politicians.

After providing the courts and the backboards, they give a few balls, maybe hold a few tournaments and they think they have done their share for sports development. Some don’t even go that far and think the same way.

Pushing sports development is not measured by how many basketball courts have your name or where your streamers hang during sports competitions.

Yes, providing the venue is one aspect of sports development, but you have to move to the next step after that.

Holding tournaments is another thing, but then holding them just for the sake of holding competitions is not also sports development. They can be used as a measure to test the program, but then if there is no real program from the start, there is nothing to test.

I hope our politicians would end their squabble about basketball boards and courts and start doing their job of promoting honest to goodness sports development.

The same goes for the politicians in other places who are hoping to bank on sports as their vehicle to get elected or to stay in power.

If you do it right, you will reap the rewards in the elections maybe, but definitely when you see the products of the program on the podium of national and international events.

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I was very saddened by the news that I received via text message late last Saturday night – legendary volleyball coach Eugene de la Cerna had passed away.

I got word about the passing away of the icon from Glenn Anthony Soco, Cebu Volleyball Association president and former player of the University of San Carlos under Sir Eugene.

Glenn said that the former players and the friends of the coach still want to push through with the event on the 17th at the USC Gym in his honor.

Sir Eugene will be sadly missed by the Cebu volleyball community. We rarely get to meet people with such dedication like him.

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MILESTONES: Belated birthday greetings to Cheryl Borlasa, Malou Borja-Caballes, Patty Rivera and Kym Limengco, and Paeng Encarnacion, who all turned a year older yesterday.

Today’s greetings go to my old friends Atty. Joel Mangubat Seno and Victor Legaspina, Jovy Maquiling, and former The Freeman reporter Shiryl Dulhao-Gatal.

            More power to all of you!