Ball now in Tabal’s hands

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association said marathoner Mary Joy Tabal will have to declare her full commitment to the PATAFA before she is reinstated to the national team and gets the chance to compete in the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games in August.

The deadline for the submission of the final entry by names to the SEA Games is fast approaching, and Tabal, a veteran of the 2016 Rio Olympics, will have to decide as soon as possible whether or not she’s willing to follow the conditions set by the association.

Philip Ella Juico, the PATAFA president, said he wants to make sure that Tabal, who resigned from the national team after the Rio Olympics, is willing to tow the line like the rest of the national athletes.

Tabal said she wrote the PATAFA last Wednesday seeking reinstatement to the team so she could see action and vie for a medal in Kuala Lumpur.

The association responded by saying that Tabal must sign a written undertaking committing herself to abide by the PATAFA rules and regulations for all national athletes.

The letter, according to Juico, must be sent to PATAFA on or before June 14 or a day before the deadline of submission of the final list of entries of athletes to the Philippine Olympic Committee, which will then forward the list to the SEA Games organizers in the Malaysian capital.

If Tabal agrees to the conditions, she has to agree to train under a coach designated by the PATAFA, train in one of the two PATAFA training camps in Manila or Baguio City, and “conducting herself at all times in a manner that demonstrates respect to fellow athletes, the PATAFA and its officials.”

Juico has chided Tabal for her insistence to train under a coach of her choice and a venue of her choice, actions which the PATAFA chief said are not “in compliance with the universal code of conduct expected of elite athletes.”

The PATAFA also wants Tabal to withdraw, officially and publicly, her “baseless” complaint letter sent to the Philippine Sports Commission addressed last February.