The Philippine National Games is set to extend its boundaries nationwide.
PNG project director Atty. Maria Fe Jay Alano and national secretariat head Annie Ruiz announced Tuesday that this year’s edition will now be divided to three legs, starting with the Luzon qualifying leg in Manila from July 2 to 6.
“We want to open the PNG to the other areas which are having difficulty in participating in the events,” said Alano.
From last year’s 45 events which drew 8,000 participants, 27 sports will be featured in this year’s edition.
Ten sports namely athletics, archery, arnis, badminton, boxing, chess, karatedo, billiards, swimming, and taekwondo, meanwhile, will be staple for all three legs.
The national championships will be held on February next year.
Alano explained that the decrease in events in the PNG, saying, “Although we have three legs, we’re still working on the same budget.”
The Luzon qualifying leg will feature the national championships for volleyball, football, baseball, lawn tennis, table tennis, cycling, wrestling, judo, fencing, sepak takraw, dancesport, underwater hockey, and rugby football.
Sponsored by Marikina Riverbanks, the first leg will be held at the Rizal Memorial Complex, Philsports Complex, and Marikina Sports Complex, with remote venues to be held in Novaliches, Pililia, Rizal, and at the Nomads Sports Club.
The Mindanao qualifying leg will be held in Pagadian City, Zamboanga del Sur from September 10 to 14, to be followed by the Visayas qualifying leg from November 10 to 14 in Antique. CFC