GAB, PSC draw clear line between pros and amateurs

From now on, any Filipino athlete who earns a living for playing his sport will be considered a professional athlete, this, after the government drew a clear line between professional sports and amateur sports in a joint resolution issued by the Games and Amusement Board (GAB) and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

“This joint resolution fulfills a very long-felt need in the sports community. If an athlete gets paid and does not play for the [national] flag, then he or she is a professional athlete,’’ GAB Chair Abraham Mitra said.

GAB-PSC Joint Resolution No. 2020-01 has created a clear-cut set of guidelines designed to end the long-running debate on the difference between professional and amateur athletes.

According to Mitra, the two sports agencies have likewise decided to redefine certain terms related to professional sports and nonprofessional sports.

He explained that it would guide sports stakeholders and help sports regulators in the performance of their functions and ensure the proper implementation of the PSC-GAB-DOH (Department of Health) Joint Administrative Order (JAO) No. 2020-0001.

“We must remember that the JAO only allows the resumption of professional sports competitions in areas classified as low risk during this time of pandemic,’’ Mitra said.

“According to the JAO, the holding of actual games for amateur sports shall be suspended until such time effective vaccines or medicines are developed,’’ he added.

Under the joint resolution of the PSC and the GAB, professional sports or competitions refer to individual or team sports, games, contests, bouts, tournaments where the participating athletes are paid sums of money or other forms of compensation as salary or prizes.

The GAB-PSC agreement has also removed sports competitions under the auspices of the PSC, schools, colleges, universities and athletic associations or organizations of colleges and universities from the definition of pro sports or competition.

“With this development, it is hoped that there will be no confusion of any kind among sports stakeholders and implementers in the future,’’ Mitra said.

The GAB, pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 871 and Executive Order No. 120, is mandated to regulate and supervise all pro sports and games in the country.

The PSC, on the other hand, is created to serve as the sole policy-making and coordinating body for all amateur sports development programs and institutions in the country pursuant to Republic Act No. 6847. INQ