Former PBA board chairman Tony Chua, the team manager of the RP team bound for the Fiba Asia championship in Yangzhou, China next year, said their sponsorship agreement with Yakult Philippines is virtually a done deal.
“Yakult has been very supportive of the PBA and they’re willing to help the national cause. They’re just awaiting clearance from their mother company in Japan,” Chua told The STAR.
The presence of Yakult Philippines marketing director Michael Ong in the first meeting of coach Yeng Guiao with the members of the national pool underscored Yakult’s intention to back the country’s bid for a berth in the 2010 World Championship in Istanbul, Turkey. Yakult Philippines president Albert Dy Sun sent Ong to the meeting as his representative.
Yakult is expected to formally come in as the RP team main sponsor starting next month and up to August next year during the staging of the Asian joust where three slots to the world championship are at stake.
Coca-Cola and Smart-PLDT are also expected to support the team.
San Miguel Corp. bankrolled the training and actual preparation of the RP team to the Tokushima Fiba Asia championship last year. No less than P30 million was reportedly spent in the endeavor netting only top finish in the consolation round.
Guiao’s program may cost much less as this covers a shorter period of preparation and involves fewer travels abroad.
Before the Fiba Asia tournament, Guiao and his team will be playing only in the SEABA championship and possibly the Jones Cup and two pocket tournaments here or abroad.
Guiao also doesn’t see the need to allocate funding for scouting. – Nelson Beltran