Asian Youth stint in peril: RP booter confined for A(H1N1)

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine football team to the first Asian Youth Games in Singapore is in danger of being booted out after one of its players showed signs of Influenza A(H1N1).

Philippine Sports Commission chairman Harry Angping yesterday identified the 14-year-old player as Claudio Lopa, who remains under observation in a local hospital.

The young athlete arrived in Singapore last Thursday and developed a fever after practicing the following day. Reports said he’s now in stable condition.

As a result, the Philippines’ game against Taiwan last Saturday was postponed, and its next match against Iran, scheduled for today, remains uncertain.

The other members of the RP football team, including 18 players and two coaches, are in quarantine.

“The Asian Youth Games will go on. The health and safety of all participants remain our paramount concern,” a spokesman of the Singapore Sports Council told Reuters.

But Angping said only those who test positive for the Influenza that has gripped the world, with close to 400 reported cases in the Philippines, should be barred from playing.

There have been 126 confirmed cases of A(H1N1) in Singapore, and the World Health Organization said the number of cases worldwide has risen to 44,287 with 180 deaths.

“Those who are not affected should not be prevented from playing,” said Angping. He learned of the incident yesterday morning, and was already scheduled to leave for Singapore last night.

“We need proper representation there, and coordinate with our embassy. I hope everything turns out fine because Singapore has one of the best medical facilities in our region,” he said.

Angping said members of the RP football team took flu shots before they left. He was trying to get in touch with Health Secretary Francisco Duque yesterday to make sure that no other athlete or official leaves for the Games if he or she is infected with A(H1N1).

Football competition in the event that drew 1,400 athletes (aged 14 to 17) from 44 countries will last until July 6, the day before the Games come to a close.

Other events on tap are aquatics, athletics, beach volleyball, 3-on-3 basketball, sailing, table tennis, bowling and shooting.

The rest of the RP delegation, numbering close to a hundred athletes and officials, will start leaving for Singapore tomorrow.

Mari Martinez, president of the Philippine Football Federation, could not be contacted for comment.

Angping said Singapore officials may take a closer look at the Filipinos coming in, but it should have no effect on their performance in the inaugural staging of the Games.

“I’ve been receiving a lot of calls from the parents of our athletes who are already in Singapore and those who are about to leave. That’s the reason I’m going there, and make sure everything is fine,” he said.