Friday, April 4, 2008

Davao Del Norte maps out sports dev't plan

TAGUM CITY, Davao Del Norte (MindaNews / April 4) – The opening rites
of the first-ever Davao Del Norte Sports Summit on Thursday prepared the red
carpet for the provincial government's journey towards making the province as
the region's sports capital.



Addressing the opening rites of the two-day sports summit at the
Bulwagan ng Lalawigan here, Gov. Rodolfo Del Rosario said he believed that the
summit and the "redevelopment" of the provincial sports complex "would make
the biggest banana exporting province as the region's sports hub".



"(Davao del Norte) is the region's sports capital in the making," said
Del Rosario. " The possibilities are boundless and this is where it all
begins," He added.



The summit was graced by Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman
William "Butch" Ramirez.



Del Rosario said "this is the beginning of the comprehensive genuine
sports development program of the province".



Former Vice Governor Anthony Del Rosario, the governor's son and
currently the provincial sports chief, said that "with the active participation
of all the provincial sports stakeholders, the province will have a genuine
sports development program that focus on sport disciplines where local
athletes have good chances in excelling".



"With your active participation and through this sports summit we can
map out a genuine strategic plan for sports development," the younger Del
Rosario told the summit that was attended also by barangay captains,
chairpersons of the Sangguniang Kabataan chapters and private sports
groups.



"This is the kind of program that needs to be sustained. We really need
to
set direction for our sports development programs," said Danny
Sumalinog, a
sports summit participant from Island Garden City of Samal.



Ramirez said that the completion of its sports complex in 2010, the
province
"perhaps, could be the regional training center in the south".



"We will no longer go to Manila, we will just train here. This is the
better
place to live, away from pollution, and work for the future champions
of the
country," said Ramirez.



The Davao Del Norte sports complex project was also unveiled during the
summit.







Meanwhile, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Davao Del Norte unanimously
approved in special session on Wednesday the resolution authorizing the
provincial government to enter into a loan agreement with Land Bank of
the
Philippines.



"We have approved the authority to borrow P500 million, and the P250
million
of that will be used for the sports complex," Vice Governor Victorio
Suaybaguio, Jr., said.



The construction of the proposed P250-million sports complex will start
soon, according to the provincial engineers office.



The 15-hectare sports complex will rise in Barangay Mankilam across the
province's Government Center, where the old sports complex once stood
until
it was razed by fire in March 2003.



The complex would have a total of 49 spans of concrete bleachers, a
rehabilitated and upgraded Olympic-sized swimming pool, a modern oval
track
with rubberized track materials and synthetic foot soccer field.



"The swimming pool and track oval will have eight lanes," said
provincial
engineer Josie Jean Rabanoz.



The complex would also have a parking area that could accommodate more
than
300cars. (Rico Biliran / MindaNews)

City gov't awards cash incentives to Davaoeño Thailand Seag medalists


DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / April 4) – Twenty medallists in last year's
Southeast Asian Games in Thailand who hailed from here received cash
gifts from the city government "for bringing honor and pride to the city and
the country".



The medallists were top-billed by Olympic-bound divers Shiela Mae Perez
and Ryan Rexel Fabriga, who each received P25,000 each for their single
gold and silver medals respectively.



Acting Mayor Sara Z. Duterte awarded cash incentives to the Davaoeño
athletes on Wednesday in a brief awarding rite held at the Pag-asa Bar of the Marco
Polo Hotel.



Duterte handed over a total of P260,000 cash gifts with gold medal winner took home P15, 000
while the silver and bronze medal medallist got P10,000 and P5,000, respectively.



Perez and Fabriga personally received their cash bonus from Duterte but
many of the other awardees were in Manila. Their parents received the awards
on their behalf.



Last December, the Davaoeño medalists also received cash incentives
from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.



"More than the cash gift, we congratulate them (the athletes) for
bringing honor and pride for the city and the country," Duterte said.



She encouraged the athletes "to continue to work hard for better
glory".



"We are very thankful for the cash bonus given by Vice Mayor Duterte,"
said Rodrigo Porala, father of Ruditha who was part of the 10-member women's
traditional boat race that won bronze medal in the 1,000-meter contest.



Luvelyn Maganda, who played a vital role in the gold medal finish of
the national softball squad, brought home P15,000. Cue artist Lee Van
Corteza and Mary Anne Basas got P10,000 apiece for winning silver in the men's
9-ball and women's 6-Red snooker, respectively.



Other awardees were marathoner Jho-Ann Banayag (silver), batters Edmer
Del Socorro and RuelBatuto (bsilver), golfer Jhonnel Ababa (silver),
traditional boar racer Amina Anuddi and Sanita Kasim (silver), diver Jaime Asok
(gold),
diver Zardo Domenios and Nino Carog (silver), tri-athlete George Vilog
(silver), sailor Richly Magsanay (silver), judoka Ruth Duga-Duga
(bronze)
and water polo team member-brothers Frazier and Norton Alamara and
Monsuito
Pelenio (silver). (Rico Biliran / MindaNews)

Pinoy US-based coach to conduct seminar in Davao City

DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/01 April) -- Three years ago, he left this city for the US to be with his family where he eventually continued his coaching career as assistant coach for a high school basketball team.
And now, with the world class basketball knowledge he learned in the US, Ronel Leuterio will be back to conduct a free seminar for Davao coaches on April 10 to 11 at Barangay 35-D gym.

The project, jointly organized by the basketball association and the city's sports development division under sports coordinator Christopher “Bong” Go, is open to all Davao coaches who are willing to know about the latest trends in coaching in the U.S.

The Chicago-based Leuterio has attended many seminars and conferences in his three years in the U.S. and will be coming to share his knowledge, including his newly-developed "Spread Offense".

The “Spread Offense” is a result of a three-year work of Leuterio who attended numerous seminars under U.S. college coaches.

“It is an offense that is out of the box, something unconventional. The positions are different or at least they are viewed in a different way,” he said in an email from Chicago.

He said basketball is usually thought of in terms of point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, and center.

“It is not 1, 2,3,4,5 like most teams do. Here you have two guards, two forwards, and a center. The guards and forwards are interchangeable, the center is the only position that is not,” he added.

Leuterio coached the Ateneo High School to several championships in local and national tournaments before he left for the US.

He is best remembered for mentoring the Ateneo HS team that won the Milo BEST national title in Cebu. He was also an assistant coach of the Davao Eagles in the Metropolitan Basketball Association, a short-lived play-for-pay league.

For more information about the seminar, contact the sports division at 2278074 and look for seminar coordinator Bert Malinao. (Rico Biliran/MindaNews)