MANILA, Philippines—The 6th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Schools Games in which some 1,400 teenage athletes from different parts of the region will compete is set to kick off on Sunday.
Education Secretary Armin Luistro and his counterparts across Southeast Asia will lead the opening ceremony at 5 p.m. Sunday at the Marikina Sports Complex in Marikina City.
Some 200 of the country’s student-athletes will take part in various competitions against 1,200 representatives from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei and Singapore in different sporting venues around Marikina and Pasig Cities.
Education assistant secretary Tonisito Umali noted in a recent speech that the primary goal of the region-wide sports competition is to foster camaraderie, unity, and cooperation among participants.
He added that the focus of the Asean Schools Games is on discipline, solidarity and the other values that children get out of sports.
For her part, DepEd National Capital Region director Luz Almeda described the Asean Schools Games as a “wonderful precursor of things to happen in the Asean integration in 2015.”
DepEd and the Marikina City government, the Asean Schools Games host, chose a leather shoe-wearing Philippine eagle as the mascot for the Asean competition which will run from November 30 until December 7.
The country’s representatives are from the Palarong Pambansa winners’ pool who are basic education students from both public and private schools not older than 18 years old.
The young athletes will participate in 11 events, including wushu; athletics; swimming; sepak takraw; table tennis; gymnastics; tennis; golf; basketball; badminton; and volleyball. A total of 125 gold medals are at stake.
The Asean Schools Games is an annual sports competition among student-athletes aimed at giving the youth a chance to gauge their athletic prowess against other competitors in the Southeast Asian region while promoting solidarity and cultural exchanges among the participants.