PSC?s Garcia welcomes moving RMSC outside of Manila
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 09 Nov 2014
Garcia.
?It?s about time.?
This was how Philippine Sports Commission chair Ritchie Garcia reacted to reports of building a complex outside Metro Manila to replace the 80-year-old Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
?It?s about time to move out of Rizal if we really want them to train our athletes and improve on their skills under the most favorable circumstances,? Garcia said during last Saturday?s SCOOP on Air program aired over DZEC Radio Agila.
?Rizal Memorial has turned out to be not conducive to our athletes? health because of the atmosphere and environment that surround it.
Grabe na ang polusyon at napakarami nang mga bagay na nakaka-distract sa ating atleta na tuloy at hindi maka-concentrate sa kanilang training.?
?It?s really time that we build a complex-cum training center in the province that?s why I?m glad hearing Cong. Yeng Guiao (of Pampanga), who is offering a portion of the Clark Air Base as site of the proposed sports facility,? the PSC top honcho commented.
Garcia said members of the board of commissioners, its counterparts in the Philippine Olympic committee, headed by its president, Jose ?Peping? Cojuangco, and other stakeholders will be meeting with Guiao, who is also the coach of Rain or shine in the PBA, and the Clark Air Base management on Tuesday to explore on how to go about constructing the complex.
Garcia added the amount to be generated from the proposed sale of the Rizal Sports Complex, the first complete stadium in Asia built in 1934 when the country hosted the 10th and last Far Eastern Games, acknowledged as the forerunner of the now Asian Games, can be used to initially fund the construction.
?That is if the sale of Rizal materializes. Kung hindi naman because there are many who are oppose to the idea of selling, we can tap the private sector, especially the corporate world to help. After all this is for our athletes, in particular, and sports, in general,? he explained.
?Those opposed to selling the RMSC, according to Garcia, expressed fears that selling constitutes desecration of the rich memory and tradition Asia?s oldest stadium has brought.
?To allay their fears, what I?m thinking is not to totally destroy the structures within the stadium. We, for instance, could preserve the sanctity, say of the Coliseum by retaining its facade and naming it after one of the prospective donors. Like what they did in Rome,? Garcia said. ?Hindi naman nila sinira ang site of the First Olympic Games when time came it?s no longer of use. They retained the structure.?
Garcia, at the same time, announced that a five man management committee has been jointly formed by the POC and PSC to ,make a study on what went wrong in the country?s participation in the last Asian Games aimed at not repeating them in next year?s Southeast Asian Games in Singapore.
?We?re starting this early because the SEA Games will be held earlier than usual in June,? he explained. ?Members of the MANCOM has been meeting regularly, first to determine what the criteria to use for an athlete to make it to the national delegation."
he PSC head was referring to wushu?s Julian Camacho as MANCOM head, and Mauricio ?Moying? Martelino of SBP, Jonee Go of canoe-kayak and himself as members.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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