Cash-hit Para Games to trim events

With barely nine months to go before the country hosts the third Association of Southeast Asian Nation Para Games, the Philippine ASEAN Para Organizing Committee (PAPGOC) remains at a loss as to where to draw the needed funds to hold the biennial meet for the differently-abled.

In fact, PAPGOC chair Mike Barredo is planning to downsize the number of disciplines in the event slated Dec. 14-21 or a week after the 23rd Southeast Asian Games from 10 to just seven or eight and cancel the other four demonstration events.

"We’re hoping and praying that we could generate enough funds from both the government and private sector to hold the third ASEAN Para Games," said Barredo, who will attend the Asian Paralympic Council’s executive meeting on March 26 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Barredo, a former Philippine Sports commissioner, is the vice president of APC and chairman of the ASEAN Para Games Sports Federation.

"But if things get hard, we might remove two or three events from our sports calendar," he added.

From just two events (athletics and aquatics) in the 2001 Kuala Lumpur Para Games and five (athletics, swimming, powerlifting, table tennis and badminton) in the Hanoi edition, the PAPGOC has increased the number of sports events to 10. These are athletics, swimming, powerlifting, badminton, table tennis, wheelchair basketball, goal ball, chess wheelchair tennis and judo.

The PAPGOC also added sailing, boccia, tenpin bowling and fencing as demonstration events.

Government agencies like the Philippine Sports Commission, Department of Public Works and Highways and the Department of Social Welfare and Development are the Para Games’ main backers.

Barredo is leaning on DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman, who is also the overall honorary chair person of the third Para Games, to help the PAPGOC get through their financial worries.

"She (Soliman) is committed to help us see the Games through and hopefully get us some funding from the Office of the President," said Barredo.

The DPWH has already allotted P4 million to PAPGOC which will be used in making the main site —the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex — friendly to differently-abled participants from all 11 member nations including East Timor.