The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) has approved the renaming of select sports facilities to national athletes who brought honor to the country.
One of the facilities renamed is the weightlifting gym at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, which will now be known as the Hidilyn Diaz Weightlifting Gym.
Diaz became the first Filipino to win the Olympic gold at the recent Tokyo Games.
Most facilities are renamed from Philippine Sports Hall of Famers, including the Felicisimo Ampon Tennis Court (Rizal Memorial Tennis Court), Teofilo Yldefonso Swimming Pool (Rizal Memorial Swimming Pool), and the Simeon Toribio Track Stadium (Rizal Memorial Track Oval).
The originally named PSC Multi-Purpose Gym located in the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex was reverted back to its original title.
“These athletes have given the honor to the country with their work in sports, we hope to keep their legacies alive for this and next generations,” said PSC Chairman Butch Ramirez.
“We want to pique the interest of the people who will read about or visit the facility. Who is Teofilo Yldefonso? What did Felicisimo Ampon do that this venue is named after him?”
The PSC said this is just the first round of naming their venues to sports heroes.
Also being planned is the opening of a modern Philippine Sports Museum building inside the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
The current PSC museum only houses several memorabilia of a number of sports heroes.