PH national athletes adjusting well inside Olympic training bubble

MANILA, Philippines—National athletes inside the bubble at Inspire Sports Academy were reminded to still be vigilant and follow safety protocols despite living in an confined environment during their Olympic preparations.

Marc Velasco, the Philippine Sports Institute National Training Director, said that the athletes must still adhere to strict mask-wearing protocols when walking inside the compound.

“They’re free to roam around, Inspire has enough facilities for them, but of course they still have to wear face masks and face shields,” said Velasco,

The boxing, karate, and taekwondo national teams housed in the bubble inside the National University campus in Calamba along with Gilas Pilipinas who are preparing for the 2021 Fiba Asia Cup Qualifiers.

“They’re adjusting to their lives there, we prepared them for a life there and a few of the athletes are already training,” said Velasco. “This is just the first week so there are still no changes. Hopefully they can adjust well. We’ll provide them with good support.”

Though there are three NSAs in the bubble, that number will be reduced to two with the national karate team set to fly to Portugal on February 4 for the Karate Premier League before flying to Istanbul, Turkey to advance their training.