PH to host 2019 SEA Games
Pinoy athletes seek to reclaim overall championship crown
FROM building new sporting facilities to becoming overall champion, the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC) is doubling its efforts to deliver its promises.
With 13 months left before the Philippines welcomes Southeast Asian athletes and delegates, Foreign Affairs secretary and PHISGOC Chairman Alan Peter Cayetano said everything related to the hosting preparations are being monitored and tracked closely.
Next year will mark the fourth time for the Philippines to host the SEA Games. The country hosted the biennial meet in 1981, 1991 and 2005.
Four years prior to its first hosting, the Philippines made its inaugural participation in the SEA Games and immediately impressed with a third place finish out of seven countries.
It was in the nation’s last hosting in 2005 that it grabbed its
- ship by far, copping 113 gold, 84 silver and 94 bronze medals.
Since then, however, the Filipinos athletes’ performance went on a downfall, only placing as high as fifth. The Philippines landed at the sixth spot with a 23- 33- 34 medal haul in the latest edition at the Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia last year.
For next year, Philippine Olympic Committee president Ricky Vargas said the goal is at least a top three finish.
“We’d like to improve our standing from ( sixth) to at least a top three,” said Vargas in the SEA Games Federation council meeting last May. “If we can get the overall championship, we will, of course, try to do so.”
With the result of the recently held Asian Games, Vargas cited Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia as among the difficult contenders for the top spot next year.
The Philippines landed 19th