Tagaytay kids join Olympic Day rites

Kids from three Tagaytay City schools engaging in sports activities highlighted the Philippine Olympic Committee’s (POC) global celebration of the Olympic Day on Tuesday at the Tagaytay CT Velodrome.

With POC president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino leading the annual celebration, the kids — more than 500 of them and all bouncing and frolicking inside the velodrome — took part in boxing, basketball, football, baseball, taekwondo and wrestling clinics administered by national sports association officials and coaches.

“This is a very important date in the Olympic Movement as we celebrate this day when Olympism and the Olympic Games were founded in 1894,” Tolentino said.

“It’s a day of fun and sports as we join the whole world in celebrating this day.”

The celebration, Tolentino explained, had a dual goal of keeping kids active and away from gadgets and discovering new talents to add to the country’s Olympic gold medals.

Tokyo Olympics boxing silver medalist Carlo Paalam and Paris 2024 bronze medalist Aira Villegas and Gilas Pilipinas legend Larry Fonacier joined other coaches in supervising the clinics.

Also joining the celebration were national sports association presidents Marcus Manalo (boxing), Ali Sulit (wrestling), Ricky Lim (karatedo), Atty. Wharton Chan (billiards) and Alvin Aguilar (wrestling) and vice president Manny de Castro (baseball) and secretary-general Rocky Samson (taekwondo).

Maharlika Elementary School had 207 school children joining the Olympic Day, while Mendez Crossing Elementary School had 131 kids Carlos S. Batino Sr. Memorial Elementary School had 175 pupils.

The International Olympic Committee marks 23 June of each year as Olympic Day — International Olympic Day — an annual tradition that dates back to 1948 the day allows Olympians and those involved in the Olympic Movement to reflect on the values of the Olympic Games.