Fighting Maroons conduct online training as alternative method
University of the Philippines men’s basketball coach Bo Perasol declined to comment on the controversy surrounding University of Santo Tomas, but spoke about online workouts for his Fighting Maroons and the difficulty getting full access to training facilities.
“A lot had already been said about it. I don’t want to add my opinion anymore,” Perasol told Manila Bulletin regarding UST’s reported "Sorsogon training."
READ: UST vows appropriate action, further probe on men’s basketball team training bubble
Perasol admitted though that it has been tough to keep his players active during the pandemic, saying they have no choice but to comply with government health protocols.
“There’s really not much that we can do together as a team right now,” he said as team practices in amateur sports are still now allowed by the Inter-Agency Task Force in General Community Quarantine areas.
READ: GAB chief Baham Mitra baffled by UAAP teams' reported training
Perasol said the best way they can adapt to the situation is to have weekly online workouts. Their strength and conditioning coach had also assigned their players individual training programs to do at home.
But those are still not enough apparently.
“It’s still limited as not all of our players have access to a fitness gym or personal gym equipment,” he said.
The Maroons, who made their first UAAP finals appearance in 32 years in 2018, were scheduled for various foreign training camps and international competitions this year until the coronavirus pandemic shook this year's global sporting calendar.
They were supposed to go to New Zealand and Australia for some games last May, and were set to defend their crown in the BLIA Cup in Kaohsiung, Taiwan in July.
They were also planning to hold camps either in Japan or Serbia before the start of the UAAP season.