President Rodrigo Duterte knows the value of sports in nation-building and the only way to motivate the more than 1,000 athletes competing in the biennial meet is to increase the cash incentives.

Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go played the role of cheerleader as the national athletes enter the final stretch of their preparation for the country’s hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games.

Go, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Sports, said additional cash incentives await members of Team Philippines who will emerge victorious in the prestigious 11-nation conclave set from 30 November to 11 December at the New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac.

He said President Rodrigo Duterte knows the value of sports in nation-building and the only way to motivate the more than 1,000 athletes competing in the biennial meet is to increase the cash incentives that they are set to receive.

“The government fully supports our athletes. We are one team! We win as one! Go for the gold,” Go indicated.

According to Republic Act 9064 or the Sports Incentives Act, SEA Games gold medalists stand to receive P100,000, while silver and bronze medalists get P50,000 and P10,000, respectively, from the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), which will source the money from the National Sports Development Fund.

But the Chief Executive always makes sure that their feats would not go unnoticed.

In fact, shortly after winning gold medals in the world stage, Duterte gave P1 million to Carlos Yulo of gymnastics and Nesthy Petecio of boxing, while handing P500,000 to silver medalists Hidilyn Diaz of weightlifting and Felix Eumir Marcial of boxing on top of what they received from the PSC.

Go said the President would not mind handing extra bonuses to SEA Games achievers for the sake of emerging with an overall title.

“There is an incentive allotted to athletes who will win gold, silver and bronze medals in the SEA Games,” Go, an avid sports enthusiast, said during the torch run on Wednesday morning at SM Lanang in Davao City.

“But aside from that, the President always gives extra incentive to the achievers. As you can see, just last month, he received the gold- and silver-medal winners in Malacañang to give them incentives that were on top of what they got from the Philippine Sports Commission. The President did that to encourage them and boost their morale in this battle.”

The last time the country emerged with an overall crown was in its previous hosting in 2005 when PSC chairman William “Butch” Ramirez, who served as chief of mission, spearheaded Team Philippines to 113 gold, 85 silver and 93 bronze medals.

Ramirez dubbed it as “Miracle in Manila” and remains optimistic that the feat would be duplicated again as the athletes march into the final month of their training and preparation.

Go agreed with Ramirez, saying that with the kind of support the government is throwing, there is no doubt that the Philippines would regain its status as a sports powerhouse in the region together with neighbors Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, the reigning SEA Games champion.

“We have so many things to look forward to in Philippine sports,” said Go, who will lead the House Committee on Sports to visit the competition venues and other sports facilities that would be used for the staging of the biennial meet next week.

“There is no doubt that Filipino athletes are at par with the best in the world. Combined with the all-out support that the government is giving, they would be a force to be reckoned with,” he added. “Our government is behind our athletes all the way. We’re in this team together. We win as one. Let’s go for gold.”

In an interview after the event, Go reiterated the government’s commitment to support Filipino athletes in the upcoming games to bolster their chances of winning medals and in recognition of their hard work in bringing pride to the country through sports.

“Let us support our athletes. As I have told them, they are our idols, particularly among those who live in the provinces, similar to our athletes from Davao,” Go said, expressing his admiration for the athletes, particularly those from Davao region representing not only the country, but also their hometown.

“I’m so proud of them, and they will be the ones who will bring the gold to our country. We are expecting that we will get the gold, lots of gold medals, and hopefully qualify to the Tokyo Olympics and get that much dreamt of gold,” he added.

In his message during the event, the senator said the journey of the torch from Davao City to New Clark City in Tarlac is symbolic in uniting the country in support of Filipino athletes as the Philippines will host the regional sporting event for the fourth time in its long history.

“The torch that will be brought from Davao to Cebu to Manila up to New Clark City in Tarlac is meant to welcome the 30th Southeast Asian Games that we will host in the country from 30 November until 11 December 2019,” he said.

Aside from unifying Filipinos to support our national team, the torch run calls for the closer integration and unity among countries in the Southeast Asian region, particularly in terms of sports development, Go stated.