CHED bares guidelines for resumption of collegiate sports training

MANILA, Philippines – Soon, college athletes can start training too.

The Commission on Higher Education on Monday released the guidelines it crafted that would allow student athletes to resume practice.

“It’s not a question of when, it’s the question of how fast they can comply with the guidelines,” said CHED chair Popoy de Vera in yesterday’s online media press conference.

The protocols, however, are limited only to only team drills, workouts and body conditioning. Scrimmages, meanwhile, will still not be allowed.

There are also certain age requirements that needed to be met, like 18- to 21-year-old athletes must secure parental consent while those below the age bracket would only be limited to online training.

Intriguingly, the Department of Health clarified that testing is not compulsory and that participants can use a 14-day isolation period as an alternative.

The working group (TWG) that formulated the protocols, who also consist of representatives from the collegiate leagues like the UAAP and NCAA, the DOH, Philippine Sports Commission and the Games and Amusements Board, stressed that competition is still out of the question minus the vaccine.

“There is an unofficial consensus among the TWG, even if there is a training bubble, which will be very costly to implement, we do not see competition starting unless a vaccine is already available and distributed,” said Herc Callanta, Lyceum of the Philippines athletic director and NCAA Management Committee member.

“That’s why virtual training is still the ideal modality since the training is solely for physical conditioning and individual skills improvement,” he added.

Both the NCAA and UAAP also ruled out the possibility of holding their seasons this year and pointed the possibility of staging it sometime in the first quarter of next year assuming conditions improved.

De Vera, however, is confident competition proper would follow if the guidelines will be strictly observed.

“I don’t see any major obstacle from the IATF if guidelines are observed,” said de Vera.