THE Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) is currently discussing its options concerning its plan of holding the resumption of the training of the national team on Monday at the PhilSports Complex in Pasig and the Baguio Training Camp amid the alarming sharp increase of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases including the Omicron scare.
The PSC has yet to decide whether or not to push through with its Jan. 10 return date but it didn’t look good that the PBA had already postponed its games this week due to the COVID-19 resurgence.
But Ramon Fernandez, Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) board member and the country’s Hanoi Southeast Asian Games chef de mission, is hoping it would push through as scheduled.
“I think so,” said Mr. Fernandez when asked if the training will push through.
The former PBA star, however, stressed it would have to be in a bubble setup and national athletes would have to adhere to strict health protocols.
The PSC approved the Jan. 10 return date in November last year to allow the national athletes to jump-start their preparation for several international competitions including the Hanoi Southeast Asian Games slated for May 12-23 and the Hangzhou Asian Games set on September 10-25.
The sports-funding agency had, in fact, started renovations of its facilities expecting the decrease of COVID-19 cases. But with the situation worsening at present, there is a chance the training may be delayed. — Joey Villar