THE Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) will open its sports facilities to the national athletes starting Jan. 10 for them to start their preparation for both the Hanoi Southeast Asian Games and Huangzhou Asian Games next year.
“The PSC board approved the resumption of training of selected national teams not earlier than Jan. 10, 2022 at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex (Manila), PhilSports Complex (Pasig) and Baguio Training Camp,” the agency said in a statement.
“This resumption is dependent on provision of many considerations for safety before final implementation,” it added.
It also said it has evaluated viable facilities that may be used and ongoing coordination with the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) and local government units involved are being done to ensure that all safety measures are taken for the protection of national team members.
This is because the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) facilities at PhilSports and Rizal have remained in operation.
Dormitary repairs have also been started as some areas were damaged due to rains.
It will also strictly implement a “no vaccine, no entry” policy at aforementioned sites.
“A ‘no vaccine, no entry’ policy will be one of the strict requirements in the said training resumption,” it said.
There were some national teams that have started competition and training like karate in Baguio and swimming at the New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac.
Track and field has laid plans it will hold a two-day bubble meet next month at PhilSports.
The PSC also spent millions to have then Tokyo Olympic-bound athletes train at the Inspire Sports Academy in Biñan, Laguna early this year.
And with the Rizal, Baguio and Pasig venues finally ready for use, government should save money usually allotted for payments of rents. — Joey Villar