Sports academy starts training of 195 young talents

By September 9, 2019News, Sports

LINGAYEN–The Pangasinan Sports Academy (PSA), a pet project of Gov. Amado Espino III, has started the weekly training of 195 new athletes at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center, to prepare them for competition in regional and national competitions representing Pangasinan.

Marlon Domalanta, Provincial Sports Development and Management Council (PSDMC) assistant director, said the initial 195 enrollees are being trained in 15 sports disciplines, among them athletics, archery, arnis, basketball, table tennis, badminton and swimming.

He said plans are afoot for the inclusion of contact sports like wushu, boxing, wrestling and others, which are all medal-rich in any sports events.

Maraming mga bata and interesado na ma-develop at ma-train sa mga sports na ganyan,” Domalanta enthused. 

The athletes are fetched from their homes in different towns and cities by the provincial bus every Friday afternoon and given free board and lodging at NRSC dormitory for two nights. The are returned to their respective homes Sunday afternoon by the provincial buses so they can go to school the following day.       

This is a weekly routine for the athletes.

Asked if these athletes enjoy sports scholarships from the provincial government, Modesto Operaña, PSDMC executive director, said: “Actually we will soon go to that”.        

Operaña said Gov. Espino is happy even if the trained athletes are eventually recruited soon by different universities in Manila to play for their teams because it means the provincial government has accomplished its mission to prepare them for their future.

Gov. Espino already signed a memorandum agreement with the school superintendents of Pangasinan I and II to make their trainors available every weekend.

There is also a plan to bring in trainors from the Philippine Sports Commission since they earlier expressed willingness to support the PSA in its mandate to develop local athletes and prime them up for bigger sports competitions.  

PSA was created in 2017 through an executive order signed by Gov. Espino so that athletes can be honed well in their favorite sports events.

The PSDMC is in charge not only in managing the PSA but also in running various year-round sports events organized by the provincial government, among them the Inter-LGU Unity Games, the Inter-Town basketball tournaments and the Governor’s Cup Chess Tournament. (Leonardo Micua) 

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