LAOAG CITY, Ilocos Norte – This province is ready to host this year’s Palarong Pambansa with the Department of Education from May 24 to 30.
Gov. Matthew Marcos Manotoc has inspected the Ferdinand E. Marcos Memorial Stadium here, the main venue of the Palaro.
Gov.Manotoc has also inspected other venues in this province.
He said inter-agency coordination is ongoing to ensure the safety, organization, and overall success of the national games.
Manotoc and other officials are welcoming delegates who started to arrive in the province on Wednesday.
An estimated 17,000 student-athletes, coaches, school officials, and technical personnel from all 17 regions in the country are expected to take part in the week-long competition.
This is the second time that Ilocos Norte is hosting the Palaro, the first was in 1968.
This year’s theme – “Nagkakaisang Kapuluan” (United Archipelago) – emphasizes national unity through sports.
The Palaro logo incorporates visual elements inspired by inabel, the province’s renowned handwoven fabric. It features a stylized woven figure of Teófilo Yldefonso, the Philippines’ first Olympic medalist known as the “Ilocano Shark” who was born in Piddig, Ilocos Norte and earned two bronze medals in the 1928 and 1932 Olympic Games.
The opening ceremony will be held on May 24 at the Ferdinand E. Marcos Memorial Stadium.
Expected to attend are President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara, and provincial officials led by Manotoc and Vice Gov. Cecilia Araneta-Marcos.