Last season saw Chery Tiggo hammer past Creamline in the first professional volleyball championship in the country. —PVL PHOTO
Unfazed by the current health crisis, the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) unveiled plans to hold three tournaments this year.
However, everything hinges on getting the green light from government and health officials.
The country’s lone professional volleyball association wants to follow up its inaugural season last year with a full calendar this year, one that remains under the threat of a surge in COVID-19 infections due to the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
“We’re hoping to have our next conference by February, but this will really depend on the IATF and GAB approvals,” said league president Ricky Palou, referring to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Games and Amusements Board, who will need to okay the PVL’s plans before it can hold a second season.
The PVL had its maiden professional season from July to August 2021, with Chery Tiggo taking the Open Conference title inside a bubble environment in Ilocos Norte.
And in September last year, the PVL announced its 2022 plans. Palou said the league plans to lock its tournaments in biosecure environments regardless of the situation.
“If we’re allowed to proceed, it will have to be in a bubble setup,” he said.
The recent spike in COVID-19 cases in the Philippines forced sports to be once again put on hold. The Philippine Basketball Association, which allowed fans back in mid-December, was forced to postpone its games for January due to Metro Manila being put under alert level 3.
Sports Vision, which organizes PVL tournaments, has penciled a three-conference offering for its second season starting with the Open Conference tentatively set to kick off on Feb. 16.
If the league will be barred from blowing a bubble in the metropolis, the PVL is willing to move to Tagaytay.
“We have Royale Tagaytay as our backup venue in case we won’t be allowed to hold our games in Manila,” Palou said.
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