Philippine hosting of Asian Age Group swimming tilt deemed a success

MANILA, Philippines – Future international swimming meets could be held in the Philippines once again, following the "excellent" hosting of the Asian Age Group Championships (AAGC). 

The Philippines hosted the 11th AAGC in Capas, Tarlac that ran from February 26 to March 9.

WA president Husain Al-Musallam lauded the country's hosting of the meet that was authorized as an Olympic Qualifying event. 

During his visit and ocular to the hosting, Al-Musallam said that the Philippines "deserved a 10." 

"Before I came here, I was not thinking about the facility I will see, but what I saw was beautiful," Al-Musallam said during his visit and ocular last week. 

"It's not [just] Asia, but you can also host world events," he added.

Al-Musallam said that with the Philippines' hosting, the WA and Asian Aquatics voiced possibility of working in with the Philippine Aquatics Inc. (PAI) in the future. 

The PAI worked with support from Malacanang, via memorandum circular 43, in a bid to accommodate about 1,400 athletes, coaches and trainers from Asia that competed in the tourney. 

"The volunteers, the organizing committee, the Philippine Aquatics (Inc.), the city, the airport — all one team.  It's very rare do you find everybody together, everybody working to create a very good environment for the athletes to compete."

PAI president Michael Vargas and secretary general Rep. Eric Buhain accepted the rating from the WA.

"We truly appreciate not only your presence but also the support and guidance you've been giving to aquatics in Asia, especially the Philippines. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you," Vargas said.
 
"We're very grateful to the trust given by World Aquatics to Philippine Aquatics. It's not something that we take lightly. In fact, we will use this trust to work harder and always keep our best foot forward in every step of the way. This success, this honor, is not just for PAI but for the Filipino nation," Buhain added.