Early prep key to Baguio early success
‘Now, aside from the budget, we had to provide the training equipment and facilities to the athletes.’
Daily Tribune‘Now, aside from the budget, we had to provide the training equipment and facilities to the athletes.’
The City of Baguio's discipline and readiness are some of the key reasons for its dominance in the 2023 Batang Pinoy and the Philippine National Games.
Gudz Jimenez Gonzales, the city's head of delegation, said the work starts as early as receiving the invites for the tournaments to sort out the athletes' needs in training.
"The strategy of Baguio is once the invitation is given, the selection process is held early so that hold our tryouts early and we can build our team," Gonzales said.
"What we saw in the local government units is that they lack training or have other problems they have to deal with. For us, we just do our selections early so the athletes for Batang Pinoy and PNG can train early."
So far, Baguio had 32 golds, 25 silvers and 40 bronzes in Batang Pinoy for a total of 97 medals.
The City of Pines' latest victories are coming from taekwondo and kickboxing.
While Baguio did spend almost P 4 million for the events, Gonzales said having the best facilities available is also crucial in their training.
"Now, aside from the budget, we had to provide the training equipment and facilities to the athletes. We would work together with the coaches in DepEd (Department of Education) and whatever they need, we will provide it," Gonzales said.