Bacolod City will host some 1,000 student-athletes for the 2024 Philippine Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) Games (PROG) Visayas qualifying leg on May 26 to June 1.
Department of National Defense Assistant Secretary Henry Robinson Jr. visited Bacolod on Thursday to discuss initial preparations with Office of Youth and Sports Development coordinator Adrian Melocoton and other local government executives.
Maj. Rene Piabol Jr. of the Philippine Air Force, Commander Ronald Lim of the Philippine Navy, and Maj. Nell Ven Maybanting of the Philippine Army accompanied Robinson.
“I’m excited to announce that Bacolod City will host the Philippine ROTC Games,” Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said in a statement. “The city will surely be buzzing with sporting action and thrills.”
Student-athletes will compete in aquatics/swimming, arnis, athletics, boxing, e-sports, kickboxing, sepak takraw, taekwondo, table tennis, volleyball, basketball, target shooting, chess, and raiders competition, as well as in the search for Miss and Mister ROTC.
In a letter dated February 12, addressed to Benitez, the Games’ Executive Organizing Committee (EOC) requested Bacolod to host the Visayas qualifiers.
The invitation was signed by Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., chairperson of the EOC.
The EOC is also composed of Commission on Higher Education Chairperson J. Prospero De Vera and Philippine Sports Commission Chairperson Richard Bachmann and honorary chairperson Senator Francis Tolentino.
“The PRG aims to revitalize the ROTC program through an annual sports competition for duly enrolled ROTC cadets,” they said.
Partner agencies also seek to encourage the development of sports programs, promote physical education, foster discipline teamwork and excellence, train young athletes for international competitions, and supplement the grassroots programs for the youth.
Students representing the Philippine Army dominated the national championships last year with 20 gold medals while Rizal Technological University rued with six.*PNA