PBA eyes Batangas City for team practices
FILE — Members of Barangay Ginebra hit the gym for individual training sessions ahead of PBA Philippine Cup bubble. —PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines—The PBA is looking at Batangas City as the site of its teams’ practices as they prepare for a potential start to the 2021-22 season.
PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial announced the plan on Thursday during a virtual press meeting where he also discussed the fate of the new season in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines.
Also present in the announcement was San Miguel Corporation Sports Director Alfrancis Chua, who said that Batangas could also be the host city to the PBA once the season pushes through.
“As for myself I think we can play there but it depends on how Comm Willie because he will still talk to them [local government unit of Batangas City] this coming Saturday,” said Chua. “If we’re targeting June then we can start practicing this May and that’s going to be the learning stage.”
Batangas City was chosen as the possible host as it’s under general community quarantine where practices of professional sports teams are allowed albeit in a limited capacity.
Metro Manila and neighboring provinces Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal, are all under modified enhanced community quarantine where practices and sports are still not allowed.
Chua said players and coaches won’t be in a bubble setup in Batangas for the daily practices and that they will only be in the gyms during training sessions and they’re allowed to go back home after their club activities.
Teams are also permitted to find their own practice venues as long as they permission from the Inter-Agency Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases with a Joint Administrative Order, a letter of approval from the LGU wherein the gym is located, and a set of health protocols that they formulated.
“It’s not limited to Batangas because if they find another venue then they can practice there,” said Chua.
