Historic online-only Palarong Pambansa looms

MANILA, Philippines – For the first time in its 73-year history, the Palarong Pambansa will be done online.

Joel Erestain of the Department of Education Secretariat said plans are now afoot on holding the annual multi-sports meet for elementary and high school student athletes virtually in selected sports and age-brackets.

“Right now, we’re planning to hold a virtual Palarong Pambansa but it’s not going to be covering the full spectrum of its sports calendar and it will only for 15- to 18-year-old athletes,” said Erestain in yesterday’s online Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum.

Erestain did not specifically mention as to what sports events their plan will cover but cited individual disciplines like chess and martial arts’ form events like those in karate, taekwondo, arnis and sepak takraw among others.

“We have now identified the sports that we think will work but its not yet final and approved by the Palaro board, said Erestain. “We’re doing this because our primordial concern is the safety of our student athletes.”

No timeline has yet been mentioned but the plan, if approved, may be implemented either this year or the next.

The Palaro was already cancelled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the first time the meet was called since it also scratched off the 2004 staging due to the national elections.