Naga to host provincial meet again

CEBU, Philippines — The Provincial School Board chaired by Governor Gwendolyn Garcia has selected the City of Naga to once again host the Cebu Provincial Meet from February 2 to 7, 2025.

This marks the second time that the City of Naga will host the province-wide sports tournament for student athletes under the Department of Education (DepEd).

Last year, the city hosted the sporting event, marking its return after the COVID-19 pandemic.

It can be recalled that the provincial meet held from March 3 to 8, 2024, brought together at least 12,000 student athletes from 44 local government units across Cebu Province.

According to Sugbo News, Capitol's official media arm, the decision to bring back the event in the city was made during a meeting last Friday. The meeting was attended by Garcia, DepEd Assistant Regional Director Fiel Almendra, Cebu Province Schools Division Superintendent Senen Paulin, and the City Schools Division superintendents.

The meet will showcase 24 sports events and cultural activities for elementary and high school students from 44 competing municipalities in Cebu.

Winners will advance to the next level, representing Cebu Province in the Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association (CVIRAA) games.

Additionally, not only towns in Cebu but also city divisions are set to participate in this year's provincial meet as a preparatory step for their "full inclusion" in next year's sports competition.

This comes after Garcia advocated for the inclusion of component city school divisions in the Cebu Province delegation for the CVIRAA, as part of her effort to unify city and provincial divisions under the "One Cebu Province" initiative.

As reported, exhibition and friendly games between city and municipal athletes are expected in this year's provincial meet.

"Provincial meet man kaha ni? The province is composed of 44 towns, six component cities, and one highly-urbanized city," said Garcia.

Garcia expressed her desire to pass an ordinance that would designate the contingent from "One Cebu" as "One Cebu Province of Cebu" in the CVIRAA meet, which would include the six component cities, one highly-urbanized city, and the provincial division. — (FREEMAN)