THE Batang Pinoy will go on as scheduled from October 25 to 30 in General Santos City amid the twin earthquakes that shook Mindanao last week, according to Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Patrick ‘Pató’ Gregorio.
‘It’s all system go, and all the venues, plus the athletes remain okay and safe,’ Gregorio told reporters during the Fifth Siklab Awards Night on Saturday at the Diamond Hotel in Manila. ‘There are no damage so far so good in all the venues,’ added Gregorio, who himself felt the earthquake while he was on a sortie on the big island to oversee both preparations for the PSC’s flagship program for the youth and the creation of a Mindanao Stadium at the University of the Philippines-Mindanao campus in Davao City.
‘General Santos City has been preparing for a long time for the Batang Pinoy,’ Gregorio said. ‘They are ready.’
He added that the local Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection, Coast Guard and local government officials are in harness for the Batang Pinoy, a 27-sport competition for children athletes aged 17 and below.
The General Santos City games, Gregorio said, will gather some 60,000 delegates-20,000 athletes and another 40,000 more who are either coaches, LGU officials and family of the athletes.
Gregorio, meanwhile, said that the Mindanao Stadium will serve as a training center for national athletes on the island and called for full government support for the facility.