All set for bigger, better Gullas Cup

CEBU, Philippines — The 2024 edition of the Cong. Rhea Gullas Cup Cebu First District Sports Tournament promises to be bigger and better with the addition of at least five disciplines when it gets underway a month from now.

This was announced by the organizers headed by Deej Pantinople and Jeanneth Villagonzalo during the event’s formal launching on Wednesday, December 27, the University of the Visayas (UV)-Minglanilla Campus.

Football, chess and table tennis will be contested for the first time as well as boxing and push bike, which is not only a competition but also an enjoyable way for toddlers to learn how to bike.

Badminton, lawn tennis, and volleyball have also been lined up.

The annual athletic meet participated in by the three component cities and three municipalities comprising Cebu’s First District will kick off with its basketball centerpiece on January 27 at the Enan Chiong Activity Center in the City of Naga.

Aside from Naga, the other contenders of the month-long tilt fully supported by Cebu First District Rep. Rhea Mae Aquino Gullas are the cities of Talisay and Carcar and the towns of Sibonga, San Fernando, and Minglanilla.

They will play a single round robin in the elimination. The team that secures a sweep will automatically advance to the finals. Teams No.3 and No. 4 will figure in a knockout match, with the winner taking on the No.2 seed for the right to challenge the top qualifier in the championship.

In case there’s no sweep, the top two teams will enjoy twice-to-beat advantage over their lower-ranked rivals in the crossover semifinals. The survivors will then figure in best-of-three title showdown.

A total of P200,000 in cash prize courtesy of Emil’s Chicken, the league’s main sponsor, will be given away to top performing teams. All games will be streamed live on the Gullas Cup Facebook page.

In another first in Gullas Cup history, the Instant Replay System (IRS) will be made available especially when a coach will exercise his privilege to challenge a questionable call or sequence of play in the final two minutes.