The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) will hold three regional legs of the Indigenous Peoples (IP) Games this year beginning with the Luzon leg in Salcedo, Ilocos Sur on April 19 and 20.
“We want to hold the Games in regions where there are many tribes,” said PSC commissioner Fritz Gaston during Tuesday’s Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
The IP Games made a successful comeback last year in Palawan after being shelved during the pandemic. Aside from the Ilocos leg, the PSC, through Gaston, is also eyeing stops in Bacolod in the Visayas and General Santos City in Mindanao.
“Because of the pandemic, it had to be put on hold but we said that this has to resume,” Gaston said during the weekly forum presented by San Miguel Corporation, PSC, Philippine Olympic Committee, PLDT/Smart, MILO and ArenaPlus.
“If you look at it, there are sports being played in the Olympics that are being played in the indigenous sports like javelin and archery,” added the former professional basketball player.
The PSC has been holding the IP Games since 2018 as part of its mandate to showcase and preserve traditional and indigenous sports like pana, sumpit, kadang-kadang, trumpo and javelin.
Meanwhile, the HOKA Trilogy Run Asia is putting its best foot forward as it launches its massive 2024 series on April 7 at the SM Mall of Asia Complex.
A total of 19 races, including the National Finals in December, will be on tap this year. It is open to all runners, from beginners to the elite level, and those in the various age groups.
Runrio event manager Kamille Atienza presented the details of the event during the weekly forum.
She mentioned upcoming legs in Cebu, Baguio, Iloilo, Bacolod, Davao and Cagayan de Oro leading to the National Finals in Pasay City. For the initial leg, they expect over 8,000 runners to participate.
“Before, we only held races in Manila but we are now planning to expand with runs in Clark, Bicol and Palawan, and for 2025 we also plan to expand as far as Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia,” Atienza said.
