SEA GAMES Athletics line-up mulled at SCOOP
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 18 Sep 2011
Citing their performances in international competitions for the past two years, coaches and members of the national pool in athletics are appealing the Philippine Olympic Committee?s decision to limit their participation in the coming 26TH Southeast Asian Games to a measly 15 athletes.
In a letter they intend to send to the POC, the national coaches and athletes would also like to know the basis used by the SEA Games screening committee in cutting the total 44 athletes the Philippine Amateur Track and Field Association had earlier recrommended for inclusion in the Indonesia-bound national delegation.
The SEA Games screening committee is made up of deputies chef de mission Romeo Magat of tennis and Julian Camacho of tennis and cluster leaders Mark Joseph of aquatics, Jeff Tamayo of soft tennis, Dave Carter of judo and Dr. Jay Adalem of basketball and none in athletics.
Head coach Joseph Sy, appearing in Friday?s SCOOP Sa Kamayan weekly session at the Kamayan Restaurant-Padre Faura, defended his association?s recommendation as capable of at least matching the 14 medals Filipino runners, jumpers and throwers brought home two years ago during the Games last edition in Laos.
Included in the list PATAFA recommended are the seven Laos Games gold medalists, headed by long jumper Maristella Torres and marathoner Eduardo Buenavista, three silver medalists and four bronze medal winners.
?We also recommended 11 athletes, who according to their recent performances have met the standard bronze medal prospects, pluS 12 more who excelled in the revived Philippine National Games,? Sy asserted during the forum, sponsored by Coca Cola Export, FILA, TV-5 and UNTV.
Sy said the inclusion of the 12 fresh talents discovered in the PNG was also made on the strength of the organizing Philippine Sports Commission?s aim in its efforts to reward those who shone in the Games with membership in the national teams.
?We, members of the coaching staff, as well as our athletes, strongly believe that more than just 15 national runners, jumpers and throwers earned the slots in the Philippine team for the SEA Games,.? Sy told members of the Sports Communicators Organization of the Philippines.
Sy, likewise, appealed to the POC to momentarily forget politics and spare the athletes from the conflict it has with PATAFA president Go Teng Kok, who the body had declared persona non grata ?We appeal to those concerned not to allow this conflict to interfere with their better judgement in coming with a really competitive and promising team in athletics in the interest of the country,? Sy said.
?Our athletes will be going to Indonesia to compete against the best in the region and win medals for our country. Hindi para mag-excursion o maglakwatsa. Huwag naman nila kaming pigilan na gawin ito dahil lamang sa pulitika,? he added.
The Filipino runners, jumpers and throwers have proven to be the winningest campaigners in the biennial conclave the past years. In the Philippines? overall championship triumph in 2005, they took nine of the 113 gold medals won by the national delegation, 10 of 84 silver medals and seven of 94 bronze medals.
In 2007 in Thailand, the athletics team brought home 5-7-9 gold-silver-bronze haul of the country?s 41-91-96 and in 2009 in Laos 7-3-4 of 38-35-51.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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