Sports

Zach Lucas Obsioma and Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson at the Western Visayas Regional Athletic Association  meet at the Panaad  Stadium in Bacolod City in May.*Bilis Cadiz photo A 10-year-old legless swimmer from Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, shone again in the recently-concluded Palarong Pambansa 2024  in Cebu City.  Zach Lucas Obsioma, who suffers from a rare congenital anomaly called the Phocomelia, won two golds and a silver in  the swimming boys amputee category at the  Palaro Para Games.  The Max Fermales and Lyn Rabuya-mentored tanker nabbed gold medals both in the 50-meter back stroke and 50-meter free style, and a silver medal in the 50-meter breast stroke, a press release from Cadiz City said.  A Barangay Zone 3 native, Obsio...

There will be 601 athletes from Western Visayas who will compete in all sporting events at the Palarong Pambansa in Cebu on July 11 to 17. Department of Education-6 spokesperson Hernani Escullar said they will be traveling to Cebu this weekend, July 6 to 7, in preparation for the national games. Escullar said the   601 athletes include 214 for the elementary games, 346 - secondary, and 41 for the paragames, who are aiming for more golds this year. Last year, Western Visayas ranked second next to the National Capital Region and Escullar said that they already provided all the needs of the athletes to ensure that they will be consistent with last year’s performance or even surpass NCR. “We are very hopeful to rank first this year”, he said, addin...

The Western Visayas Regional Athletic Association meet closing rites Tuesday afternoon.*Richard Mailhan photo Iloilo was the overall champion at the 2024 Western Visayas Regional Athletic Association Meet that ended at the Paglaum Park and Stadium in Bacolod City on Tuesday, May 7. The Department of Education’s final and official tally showed Iloilo was the champion in the elementary and secondary levels, as well as in the paragames and demo sports. Negros Occidental was first runner up in the elementary and secondary levels, and in the paragames. Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson, in his speech at the closing rites, congratulated all those who participated in the WVRAA meet. “To our athletes, you have showcased outstanding sportsmanship, dedication, and...

Zach Lucas Obsioma and his swimming mentor, Max Fermales, after winning his third gold at the WVRRA 2024 in Talisay City on Sunday.*Maria Evita Obsiama photoA 10-year-old boy from Cadiz City, who  was born with the rare phocomelia syndrome,    grabbed three golds in swimming at the  paragames of the ongoing Western Visayas Regional Athletic (VWRAA) Meet 2024 hosted by Negros Occidental and Bacolod City.  Dubbed as the WVRAA "swimming sensation", Zach Lucas Obsioma, a Level 5 student at the Special Education (SPED) Training Center in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, was a crowd favorite at the swimming venue at St. John's Institute on May 3 to 5, a press release from Cadiz City said.Phocomelia syndrome  is a rare congenital anomaly where the...

Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez  and  Senator Francis Tolentino (3rd and 4th from left)  with  Carlos Hilado Memorial State University president Norberto Mangulabnan, CHED-Western Regional Director Raul Alvarez  and Philippine Air Force Reserve Commander Maj. Gen. Elpidio Talja (l-r) show the signed memorandum of agreement for the  hosting the ROTC Games.* The Bacolod City  government  is gearing up for the staging of the Philippine Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) Games 2024 Visayas Regional Qualifying Leg on May 26 to June 1, an event seen to boost the position of Bacolod as a sports tourism destination.  Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez and Maj. Gen. Elpidio Talja, commander of the Philippine Air Force Reserve Command, led the signing of the ...

The athletes at the WVRAA meet opening on Thursday.*Richard Malihan photo Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson is rooting for the athletes from  Negros Occidental to win the championship at the ongoing    2024 Western Visayas Regional Athletic Association (WVRAA) Meet at the Panaad Park and Stadium in Bacolod City. “I wish the best for our athletes,” Lacson said on Friday, May 3. Lacson said he would like to see a lot of Negrenses  representing Western Visayas at the 64th Palarong Pambansa in Cebu in July. The governor said he is keeping some of his afternoons free to watch the  WVRAA games and cheer for the Negrense athletes. The WVRAA meet ends on May 7.*  

The groundbreaking rites on Saturday.*Victorias PIO photo Victorias City is making  history again as the first 11-aside Football Pitch equipped with synthetic turf in the Western Visayas Region will soon rise at the  Victorias National High School.  Victorias Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez led the groundbreaking ceremony for the project together with Rep. Erwin Tulfo (ACT-CIS Party List), Rep. Jose Francisco “Kiko” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District), and Schools Division Superintendent Dr. Portia Mallorca on Saturday,  April 27.The  football pitch will be the first-ever 11-a-side synthetic turf in the region, Benitez said in his speech. Benitez said  he aspires to make Victorias City a sports tourism hub in  Negros Occidental.  T...

Athletes from 12 tertiary schools in Negros Occidental and Oriental are competing in the first-ever Negros Island Region (NIR) Private Schools Athletic Association (PRISAA) Meet in Bacolod City that started Friday, April 26.After the opening rites held at the STI West Negros University gymnasium, the various sports events began in venues of participating schools and in shopping malls and will run until April 30.Ryan Mark Molina, executive vice president and chief operations officer of STI West Negros University and second vice president of National PRISAA, said that during its planning conference last August, the National PRISAA Board gave its blessing to put up the NIR PRISAA."While our government is looking into the structure of the Negros Island Region, we, here, in the acad...