CEBU, Philippines - Three Cebuano sepak takraw athletes will form part of the Philippine Team that will represent the country in the 2nd ASEAN School Games on July 12-21 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Rhey Jay Ortouste, George Ian Buhayan and Kevin Largado of Abellana National School are all excited as they gear up for their first international exposure.
Originally, Ortouste, Sammy Galleon and Angelito Raymart Abella were picked by Philippine Amateur Sepak Takraw Association (PASTA) to don the RP colors, but Galleon and Abella are already at the University of Cebu for their college studies.
ANS coach Marlon Gicain said that he was advised by PASTA to choose two of his existing players to replace Abella and Galleon.
“This tournament will serve as an exposure for my players. Largado and Buhayan were chosen based on their performance in the Palarong Pambansa and they are also more experienced when it comes to competitions,” said Gicain.
During the Palarong Pambansa last summer in Tarlac, the three harvested all the special awards. Ortouste was the best spiker, Abella the best tosser and Galleon the best tekong (server).
In addition, they are also the defending champion in the 1st National Milo Little Olympics.
“We will just do our very best. We’re hoping that we could be a good reinforcement for the team,” said Gicain, a former varsity player and coach of sepak takraw powerhouse Southwestern University .
The three will join nine players from Palawan, which bagged the championship title in the team event and placed second in the Best Regu.
Gicain hopes that the city government would support them in their international venture.
“This is the first time that we will be participating in an international competition. We know for the fact that we don’t have enough budget, that’s why we would like to seek the support of the city government. We hope that they could help us financially,” said Gicain.