The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) is requesting an additional budget of P450 million in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for five major international competitions in 2022.
POC President Bambol Tolentino submitted the letter of request to Senate President Tito Sotto through Senate Committee on Appropriations Chair Senator Sonny Angara, House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco and Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Butch Ramirez.
Based on the request, ₱5 million will be devoted for the training and participation of athletes for the Winter Olympics on Feb. 4 to 20 in Beijing, China; ₱150 million for the 6th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) on March 10 to 20 in Bangkok and Chonburi, Thailand; ₱10 million for The World Games (TWG) on July 7 to 22 in Birmingham, Alabama; ₱270 million for the 19th Asian Games on Sept. 10 to 25, 2022 in Hangzhou, China; and ₱15 million for the 5th Asian Youth Games on Dec. 20 to 28, 2022 in Shantou, China.
Tolentino said the budget proposals are based on the number of athletes and events they will participate in the tournament, as well as the training.
“Participation in these high level sports events is truly significant as these are held only every four years,” Tolentino said in the letter of request dated Monday.
“Not only will joining these sports events showcase the Filipino brand of athletic talent, but more so elevate the morale of our athletes and inspire other young Filipinos to engage in sports training and development.”
The Asian Games is expected to have the most number of participants from 250 to 275 athletes, followed by the AIMAG (160 athletes), Asian Youth Games (15 to 20) and the Winter Olympics (three to four).
Tolentino also included possible additional expenses for the 31st Southeast Asian Games, although Vietnam has yet to decide in October whether or not it would push through next year.
The estimated budget for the SEAG is pegged at ₱200 million.
National teams hope to ride on the momentum of the country’s successful campaign at the Tokyo Olympics, where it went home with a historic one gold, two silver, one bronze-medal haul.