INQUIRER Sports

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Olympic Committee now needs to raise only 25 percent of the funding required to send the additional 94 athletes to the Southeast Asian Games in Laos.

“The POC has already raised 75 percent of the necessary funding,” said POC spokesperson Joey Romasanta during the PSA Forum Tuesday at Shakey’s UN Avenue branch.

Whatever happens, Romasanta said the athletes will compete in the Dec. 9 to 18 Games as earlier promised by POC president Jose “Peping” Cojuangco Jr.

“He’s (Cojuangco) hopeful that the requirements to finance the athletes will come,” said Romasanta, adding that several private donors have already pledged financial support for the estimated POC budget of P5.64 million for the 94 athletes.

The additional athletes and officials will join the 153 athletes and 47 officials in the original list earlier approved by the SEA Games selection committee. The Philippine Sports Commission has set aside a P30-million budget for the batch of 200.

It was unclear whether the POC budget will also cover the additional 85 officials.

The SEA Games budget for each member of the RP delegation is P70,000, inclusive of the athlete’s daily accommodation expenses of $50, airfare and the $300 allowance.

In the same forum sponsored by Pagcor, Shakey’s, Accel and Outlast Battery, RP chef de mission Mario Tanchangco said the POC will submit the complete list of athletes and officials only today.

Tanchangco said the Laos organizers had extended the deadline for the submission of the final RP lineup due to the recent holidays and the typhoon that hit the country.

He said the official RP lineup will be released to the media on Thursday.

Tanchangco said the biggest batch of athletes will leave for Vientiane on Dec. 7.