The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) election set next month will be a duel for presidency between incumbent Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino of cycling and challenger Chito Loyzaga of baseball.

This, after Loyzaga announced his candidacy on Wednesday, Oct. 30, along with his lineup.

Incidentally, it also came a day after Tolentino disclosed his own lineup for the polls as he seeks a fresh four-year mandate in the highest sports governing body in the country.

Loyzaga, running under the platform of Unity, Good Governance, Transparency, Integrity, Peace and Inclusivity, has basketball’s Al Panlilio as first Vice President, squash’s Robert Bachmann as second Vice President, surfing’s Dr. George Canlas as Treasurer, and weighlifting’s Rod Roque as Auditor. His Board Members are Rep. Peter Miguel (archery), Dr. Charlie Ho (netball), Rommel Miranda (kurash), Derek Ramsay (gymnastics), and Steven Virata (equestrian).

“I am committed to fostering an atmosphere where inclusivity and unity guide our path forward. I believe that a united and transparent POC will best serve our athletes, coaches, sports officials, and the entire Philippine sports community,” Loyzaga said.

Earlier, Tolentino presented his own lineup which also has modern pentathlon’s Rep. Richard Gomez as second VP, volleyball’s Don Caringal as Auditor, and Board Members Ali Sulit (judo), Ferdie Agustin (jiu-jitsu), Len Escollante (canoe-kayak), Alvin Aguilar (wrestling) and Leah Jalandoni Gonzales (fencing).

Curiously, Panlilio and Canlas are also listed in Tolentino’s lineup for the same positions.

Under Tolentino the last four years, the country has won three gold medals in two Olympics that bridged one cycle, four Asian Games gold medals, and an overall championship in the 30^th Southeast Asian Games in 2019.

The POC holds elections once every four years—or one Olympic cycle—specifically on the last Friday of November of an Olympic year.

There are 59 voting members of the POC—34 Olympic national sports associations, 22 non-Olympic federations, two from the Athletes Commission and International Olympic Committee representative to the Philippines Mikee Cojuangco Jaworski.