National Academy of Sports looking for student-athlete scholars

MANILA, Philippines — The National Academy of Sports (NAS) has extended the application period for incoming Grades 7 and 8 student-athletes who are into any of the eight Olympic sports that are currently the focus of the institution.

Academically competent and athletically talented natural born Filipino youth under aquatics (swimming), athletics, badminton, gymnastics, judo, table tennis, taekwondo and weightlifting may apply for the NAS scholarship program until June 30.

“We are calling our promising student-athletes to study here at the National Academy of Sports to help our country perform better and at a higher level during regional or worldwide sporting events, especially now that we have our world-class sports facilities and program to hone them,” Education Secretary Leonor Briones said in a statement.

As part of the scholarship program, student-athletes will receive incentives like free tuition, free board and lodging at the NAS dormitory, provision of quality secondary education and access to specialized sports training in world-class facilities.

Scholars will also get monthly stipend as well as the opportunity to represent the country and the academy in international competitions and exchange programs.

Briones joined President Duterte during the inspection of the NAS learning and training center at the New Clark City in Tarlac last Tuesday.

Among those that they visited were the new academic and administration building and the multi-purpose gymnasium, which was constructed through the P557.8-million NAS Phase 1 project.

The project began on July 16 last year. Phase I is expected to be completed by the end of next month while the entire project (Phases II and III) is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.

“This National Academy of Sports is envisioned to be a world-class facility that would serve in the forefront in our efforts to provide a conducive environment for the academic and sports training and character development of our young athletes,” Duterte said.

On June 9, 2020, the President signed Republic Act 11470, which established the NAS System to provide support for Filipinos with considerable potential in sports and “to develop the athletic skills and talents of students in world-class sports facilities that are at par with international standards.”

The NAS is an attached institution of the Department of Education, in partnership with the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

It is mandated to implement a quality and enhanced secondary education program, integrated with a special curriculum on sports.

To ensure the international competitiveness of the student-athletes, the academy provides services of licensed and internationally certified foreign coaches, trainers and consultants, duly certified by the PSC.

The institution – whose main campus is located at the New Clark City Sports Complex in Tarlac, which hosted the 2019 Southeast Asian Games – started offering secondary education last year.

The NAS welcomed its pioneering batch of scholars during the opening of school year 2021-2022 in September last year.

Face-to-face classes will be held on a pilot basis starting SY 2022-2023.

“Our point A to point B should take us from home to podium – from national pride to global achievement,” NAS executive director Joy Reyes said.

“NAS’s approach toward holistic formation by combining sports training, academics and support services … aims for the student-athletes to be fully prepared and equally competitive in their respective sports,” Reyes added.

Nation of champions

The Philippines can soon be a nation of champions with the newly opened NAS, senators said yesterday.

The school is envisioned to produce future world-class Filipino athletes, according to Sen. Pia Cayetano, a former national volleyball player and principal author of RA 11470 that established the NAS.

In the 15th Congress, Cayetano filed the first version of this proposal, then known as the Philippine High School for Sports (PHSS) Act. The bill got support from fellow sports advocates, including Fr. Tito Caluag, the late senator Edgardo Angara and then Aurora congressman Sonny Angara, who filed a counterpart bill at the House of Representatives. The bill was not enacted into law.

In the 16th Congress, Cayetano said she refiled the bill as a House member, while Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian filed and sponsored its counterpart at the Senate.

It was in the 17th Congress, however, when the bill finally passed both chambers.

Meanwhile, Sen. Bong Go, who chairs the Senate committee on sports and co-author of the law, underscored that developing excellent athletes who can bring pride to the country requires the collective effort of the entire nation.

“Good athletes do not arise out of nowhere, and years of training are required, with a whole-of-nation approach to ensure their welfare,” Go said in Filipino.

“The molding of our athletes who will bring honor to our country is a collective effort of the nation. They cannot achieve their dreams for themselves, for their families and for the country without ample support,” he added.

A sports enthusiast himself, Go is an advocate of long-term grassroots sports development.

He said that aside from honing the skills of budding Filipino athletes, sports will help them stay away from drugs and criminality at a young age. –  Paolo Romero, Cecille Suerte Felipe