MEMBERS of Gilas Pilipinas and foreign players have started to arrive in Clark for the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) Asia Cup Qualifiers third and final window.
Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) President and Chief Executive Officer Vince Dizon, Clark Development Corp. (CDC) President and CEO Manuel Gaerlan and BCDA Senior Vice President for Corporate Services Group Arrey Perez witnessed on Sunday the arrival of teams at the Quest Hotel and Conference Center in Clark.
“This is the first international sporting event since we went through this very difficult time,” Dizon said. “Seeing Gilas Pilipinas compete here at home is such a welcome sight and gives us so much hope that we are towards the tail end of this difficult time.”
“We are very much proud and happy to host here in Clark the 2021 Fiba Asia Cup Qualifiers,” Gaerlan said. “We hope that our countrymen will cheer not only for our national team but also welcome the foreign teams.”
Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) Executive Director Sonny Barrios, Deputy Executive Director Butch Antonio and Special Assistant to the President Ryan Gregorio joined the Sunday’s online press conference.
“We cannot overemphasize our gratitude for BCDA and CDC’s valuable support to make this event take place after a couple of earlier postponements because of the challenges of the pandemic,” Barrios said. “But through your kind and strong assistance, finally we are here.”
The Philippines, through the BCDA, CDC and SBP, is hosting the third and final window of the Fiba Asia Cup Qualifiers from Wednesday to Sunday.
Perez said the event was also made possible through the coordination with various stakeholders.
“Prior to this event, we coordinated with all stakeholders and they gave us their full support. The most critical thing is to provide tighter security as we’ve learned during PBA bubble,” Perez said.” All hands on deck and we’re confident that we’ll make this event successful.”