MANILA,Philippines — Isasalang sa unang pagkakataon ang underwater hockey event sa 30th Southeast Asian Games at hangad ng Philippine team na agad makuha ang apat na nakatayang gintong medalya.
Kumpiyansa si Philippine Underwater Hockey Federation president Dennis Valdes na magagawa ito ng national squad dahil sa kanilang pagsisikap at dedikasyon.
“I believe the Philippine UWH Team will do very well at the SEA Games. I am personally hoping to get four gold medals out of the four events. Of course, this cannot be guaranteed, but our athletes are training very hard for this goal,” wika ni Valdes.
Kilala rin bilang Octopush, ang underwater hockey ay magtatampok sa dalawang koponan na gumagamit ng hockey stick para makaiskor sa ilalim ng swimming pool.
Apat na gold medals ang nakalatag sa men’s 4x4 at 6x6 at sa women’s 4x4 at 6x6 competition categories na nakatakda sa Disyembre 2 at 3 sa New Clark City sa Capas, Tarlac.
Para sa kanilang training ay inilahok ng pederasyon ang mga national underwater hockey players sa Australian Underwater Hockey National Cham-pionships sa Cairns, Australia kung saan naglaro si top athlete Christian Policarpio para sa New South Wales Men’s Masters team.
“For the Men’s Team, we have high hopes for our forward Topz Policarpo. For the Women’s Team, it’s our forward, Nadj Buenafe. We hope that both will score a lot of goals for Team Philippines,” ani Valdes.
Todo suporta ang ibinigay ng Philippine Sports Commission para sa pagsasanay at paghahanda ng koponan.
“It is our duty to ensure that our athletes, especially those training for the nearest competition in the calendar, which is the SEAG, get ample time to train both at home and overseas,” sabi ni PSC chairman at Chef De Mission William ‘Butch’ Ramirez.
Ang Singapore ang inaasahang makakaagawan ng Pilipinas sa gintong medalya bukod sa Indonesia at Malaysia.
“The Philippine underwater hockey squad could be new, but its members have shown dedication to their sport and we will count on them to give our fellow Filipinos big things to cheer on,” ani Ramirez.