THE Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (Patafa) has started shopping for a temporary training venue for its athletes as the government facilities in Manila and Pasig City remain off limits while they cater to Covid-19 patients.
Patafa President Dr. Philip Ella Juico told an online press conference on Sunday that the association has pinpointed several schools as training venues in lieu of the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila and the PhilSports oval in Pasig City.
The Inter-Agency Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases has designated both complexes as quarantine facilities since March.
“We are looking for other locations for our training and activities, in the NCR [National Capital Region, in Cavite, and also in Laguna,” Juico said.
De La Salle Dasmariñas or Vermosa Sports Hub in Imus, both in Cavite, are tops on the list, although Juico, a former Dean of Graduate School of De La Salle, said a school in Biñan, Laguna, is also a potential venue.
The Patafa and other national sports associations have requested the IATF to order the resumption group training and even competitions.
Juico’s secretary-general, Agapito Capistrano, said identifying a training venue is marked as urgent as Patafa athletes are still trying to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics that were postponed to July next year.
Kristina Knott, the national and Southeast Asian Games record holder in the women’s 200 meters, and another Filipino-American, SEA Games shotput record holder William Morrison, joined the online press conferences from their homes in the US.
“All the competitions were canceled. It’s kind of sad for me. Competing is the most important part to be in the Olympics,” the 24-year-old Knott said from Orlando, Florida, where she is working out on grass as track facilities in the US remain shuttered.
Like Knott, Morrison is also working on his ticket to Tokyo.
“To be honest, I was on my way to get it,” the 23-year-old said. “I was pretty upset. I have 15 meets lined up but were all canceled because of the virus.”
Morrison set a personal best 20.21m last February, under a meter short of the 21.10m standard for the Tokyo Games.