Not even a spike in COVID-19 cases can stop the National Collegiate Athletic Association from pushing through with its 96th season in the middle of this year.
Competitions will be held online and hopefully, through hybrid form, as the country’s oldest media organization looks to kick-start the special season in the first week of May.
“Yes, we’ll be pushing through,” said NCAA Management Committee chairman Fr. Vic Calvo Jr. of host Letran at the Philippine Sportswriters Association online Forum on Tuesday.
Only two sports are so far certain to be held online, namely chess and taekwondo, including poomsae. Basketball and women’s indoor and beach volleyball, are also included in the calendar of events, but pending the approval from the Commission on Higher Education and the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging and Infectious Diseases.
The collegiate league, according to the ManCom chief, already wrote a letter to the corresponding agencies three weeks ago.
“For sure, dalawa or apat na hybrid and online competitions ang ikinakasa ng NCAA,” added Calvo in the weekly session presented by San Miguel Corporation, MILO, Amelie Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.
With contact sports still not allowed, the NCAA is considering doing online skills on both basketball and volleyball such as slam dunk, skills and drills challenges, three point shootout, among others.
“Possibly, kung papayagan (dahil) online din naman,” said the Letran official in the same public sports program powered by Smart and Upstream Media as the official webcast partner. “Pero merong mga restrictions kasi ngayon ‘yung IATF, and of course, CHED and other agencies.”
Calvo said it’s the best the NCAA could offer in order to re-invigorate college sports in the country which the league is doing in partnership with broadcast giant GMA.
“That’s the best legacy Letran can give to the next season and the NCAA,” he stressed. “Hindi tayo nag-give up kasi NCAA embodies the Filipinos’ resiliency and perseverance lalo na sa sports.”
Vaccinating the athletes and officials had also been discussed as talks and arrangement with member school Emilio Aguinaldo College under President Dr. Jose Paolo Campos were already made.
Campos is part owner of Unilab, which is the authorized partner of Faberco Life Sciences Inc, distributor of the COVID-19 vaccine Covavax.
“Kung available na siya (vaccine), we will order vaccines for all the schools for tournaments like basketball and volleyball,” said Calvo. “We will finance the vaccination of athletes and officials.”