PSC holds NCR Batang Pinoy

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Sports Commission yesterday launched the Batang Pinoy National Capital Region Qualifying Leg on Sept. 17-21 at the Marikina Sports Center in Marikina.

“This is one of the PSC’s talent identification programs and we expanded it this year so that our base will be wider,” said PSC commissioner Jolly Gomez.

He added that the top performers in the five-day event, will have a chance to gain berths in the national team that will compete in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Sports School Competition in Vietnam this year.

“We’re now closely working with the Department of Education and we would like to start building up a strong team to compete in Vietnam,” said Gomez.

PSC executive director Guillermo Iroy said their aim is to establish a base of young talents for future international competitions.

“We are planning to host the ASEAN Sports School meet perhaps in 2014 and we want to have a team that we hope to represent the country well,” said Iroy.

While the top athletes of last year’s edition were sent for training in London, England, this year’s top finishers will be sent to either San Diego, California, Brisbane, Australia or Xiamen, China.

“We’re talking to these prospective partners,” said Gomez.

The NCR leg features archery, arnis, athletics, badminton, boxing, chess, karatedo, lawn tennis, swimming, taekwondo and table tennis.

Judo and girls volleyball, meanwhile, are holding their national finals already in this particular leg.

After the NCR elims, the Batang Pinoy, open to students and out-of-school youth athletes aged 18 years old and below, will go to Pangasinan for the Northern Luzon stage Oct. 10-13, Oriental Mindoro for the Southern Luzon leg Oct. 24-27, Cagayan de Oro for the Mindanao Leg Nov. 7-10 and Tacloban City for the Visayas leg Nov. 21-24.

The national finals will be held in Iloilo City Dec. 5-8.