FG, PSC tackle 10 ‘priority’ sports

Sustaining the gains of the Filipino athletes’ historic feat in the recent Southeast Asian Games, First Gentleman Mike Arroyo said he would meet with Philippine Sports Commission chair Butch Ramirez on Monday to hopefully identify the 10 "priority" sports that will be fully supported in line with the country’s campaign in the Doha Asian Games in December and a crack at a first-ever Olympic gold in the Beijing Games in 2008.

Boxing, shooting and three other combat sports — taekwondo, karatedo, wushu -- are among those likely to be named since these are sports where the Filipinos, based on their previous performances, more specifically the last SEA Games here, have chances of finally ending the country’s long Olympic gold medal drought.

"We will discuss the 10 priority sports for Doha and Beijing so that when we call for another pledging session for prospective sports godfathers, they would know which sports they would support," said Mr. Arroyo in a luncheon with STAR editors yesterday

He added that San Miguel Corp., Pagcor and Tessie Sy of SM Group of Companies have already signified their intention to be major supporters of the training of athletes coming from the 10 priority sports.

The First Gentleman also hoped that wushu, the most prolific RP front in the SEAG with 11 golds, would make it in Beijing after he was assured by Francis Chan, lifetime honorary wushu president, that the sport would be held as a special event in the Olympics.

The country’s stint in the Doha Asiad will be given emphasis in the meeting with Mr. Arroyo fully recognizing the need for the Filipino athletes to come up with a solid campaign in the Asiad given the high level of competitions in the quadrennial meet.

"Doha will be a good gauge for our Beijing Olympics aspirants because of the world class competitions it would provide, particularly in the presence of China which has proven its worth as a world sports power in the last Athens Games," said the First Gentleman.

The Chinese finished second to the United States in the last Olympic Games in Greece with a 32-17-14 (gold-silver-bronze) medal haul. The Americans lorded it over the field with a 35-39-39 take.

The First Gent is hopeful of a breakthrough Olympic win for the boxers and the divers following their impressive stints in the Manila Games.

He said that diver Sheila Mae Perez, the biggest revelation in the SEAG with three gold medals, will be given scholarship in China where she will undergo a three-year training geared towards a stint in the Beijing Olympics.

Fencer Wally Mendoza, a veteran of the world championships, will also receive full support from the First Gentleman Foundation.

He stressed that the Monday meeting will not only touch on the sports but also on the athletes "so we will know what to tell our prospective sponsors and companies before the pledging session."

The First Gent drew over P150 million in a pledging session for the SEAG campaign and the PSC was able to come up with a sound program and international exposures and training for the RP bets en route to winning the overall championship in the biennial meet with 113 gold medal haul.

"The athletes’ training in China was an eye opener," said Mr. Arroyo. "They slept early, trained hard and developed fighting hearts which were very evident during the SEA Games."

"If we could generate funds of P200 million for the Doha and Beijing campaigns, we would be able to put up a very efficient training program for the next three years," he added. — Lito A. Tacujan