Pinoy youngsters being honed for international sports

AMID lackluster performance of Filipinos not only in the Olympic Games but also in regional competitions, there is this persistent agitation from various sectors that what our future athletes need to be competitive is intense training abroad at a younger age.

And this opportunity, we are happy to note, is supported by Philippine sports officials, as well as various corporate sponsors and generous individuals.

One encouraging news in this area is the up-coming training of six young Filipino football players in Barcelona, Spain. The student booters were selected to participate in the Astro Kem Bola Overseas Training Program on December 5-20.

Together with 32 young players from other countries, the talented Pinoy football youngsters will be given the rare chance of being mentored by prestigious premier league Team FC Barcelona.

The young booters will be given the opportunity to learn first-hand the various techniques of the game and hone their own skills from world-class Barcelona (Barca) team members like Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Andres Iniesta.

From Tokyo, another inspiring news. Five young Filipina student swimmers from Manila garnered awards for being standouts in the Most Outstanding Swimmers in the 2016 Buccaneer Invitational Championship at the St. Mary’s International School Swimming Pool in Tokyo, Japan.

The record-breaking feats achieved by the Filipina schoolgirls were in the individual medley, butterfly, medley relay, freestyle relay. These were record-breaking achievements by the girls.

The Pinoy boys won the events in butterfly, backstroke, medley relay, freestyle relay, backstroke in various distances.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Olympic Committee will hold its election of officers on November 25. Elected officials will serve a four-year term each.

Up for reelection for his fourth consecutive term is Jose “Peping” Cojuangco Jr. as president.

Expected to challenge the incumbent president is Ricky Vargas who is filing an appeal of his earlier disqualification. Grounds of his being barred to run as candidate for president is his inability to attend personally POC meetings. Although, he always sent a proxy to those meetings.

*** KATBALAOGANON FOUNDATION, INC. FUND-DRIVE FOR INDIGENT SCHOOLCHILDREN.

There is no stopping for this vibrant organization in helping indigent school children in their province of Samar to have modest school buildings and corresponding school aids to bolster the kids’ quest for education.

KFI’s latest fund-raising effort was the staging of “Jose and Wally at the Museum” last September 26. As expected, it was an SRO crowd at the Greenhills venue that attended the two-hour family entertainment show. The same full-packed attendance to earlier fund-generating events sponsored by the Katbalaoganon Foundation, Inc.

This time funds raised were for the construction of a two-classroom building for indigent students in Barangay San Vicente in Catbalogan City, Samar.

Tessie Tomas who is a native of the place, as in previous events, was at the forefront of the series of public service undertakings for her “kababayans”. She has been KFI’s president for years now, and by the manner she makes every events successful, it is a foregone conclusion to say she will be endorsed by the general membership as lifetime president!

KFI has variously done successful medical missions, scholarship program, delivery of relief goods and medicines in Samar since Typhoon Yolanda.

These days it is classroom-construction for indigent schoolchildren of Waray families in Catbalogan City that KFI is focused on.