Rowing bets get boost

Athletes and officials from three sports have started recei­ving financial aid as more and more sport groups loosened their purses for the coronavirus efforts.

Philippine Rowing Association (PRA) athletes, most of them quartered at their La Mesa training facility, got P2,000 each from PRA officials led by Patrick Gregorio.

Southeast Asian Games gold medalists Melca Jen Caballero, Cris Nievarez and Joanie Delgaco are among the beneficiaries.

Thirteen others got “supplemental” money on top of their salaries from the Philippine Sports Commission.

Gregorio exhorted the athletes to keep their hopes high despite the lockdown limitations.

“We want to assure you of our support in this trying times as you continue to train and stay focused for Olympic qualifying and other international competitions once this [crisis] is over,” Gregorio told his athletes and coaches in a statement.

Muaythai Association of the Philippines chief Lucas Managuelod had earlier given P5,000 to each of his athletes to tide them over during the “difficult and challenging times.”

Unlike the two sports, the tennis community focused on match officials who depend mainly on their game-day pay.

Philippine Tennis Association president Antonio Cablitas has also extended support to game officials out of his own pocket.

This is on top of the initiatives of national coaches Karl Santa­maria and Roland Kraut, who have so far raised more than P150,000 in cash and other goods for UAAP game officials. INQ