Tuesday, April 17, 2007 400-strong COAAA team leaves for Tubod By Lyndes Salgados
OVER 400 athletes, coaches, chaperons and delegation officials--representing the Cagayan de Oro Athletic Association (COAA)--leave here today for the 2007 Northern Mindanao Regional Meet Palarong Pampook set on March 18-21 at the Mindanao Civic Center in Tubod, Lanao del Norte.
The four-day event, serving as Region 10's final selection of its deserving athletes to this year's Palarong Pambansa, will have at least 17 sports disciplines to be disputed in elementary and secondary levels.
These include athletics, badminton, baseball, basketball, chess, football, gymnastics, softball, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, lawn tennis, volleyball, sipa takraw, arnis, archery and boxing.
"As of now, we're still pre-occupied in verifying the athletes' documents to ensure that cheating can be avoided. It's a tedious effort but COAA team is in high spirit," said COOA's athletic manager Delia D. Agbon who guarantees the safety of the students-athletes in their assigned billeting quarters.
Agbon said the COAA team will stay at the National High School building of Kapatagan, some 15 minutes ride away from the playing venue.
"We've just gone there in Tubod to inspect the venue ug ang katulganan sa mga participating teams where among nakita nga plastado ang tanan," Agbon told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro.
Fely T. Yu is this year's head of delegation with Edna L. Maghinay, lawyer Adrian L. Barba and Agbon as assistant head of delegation.
Majority athletes from Corpus Christi and Balubal National High School will carry the fight for COAA in the centerpiece events--swimming and athletics, even as the multi-titled Francis Casey Alcantara of Xavier University High School is arguably the most prominent athlete off to strut wares in Tubod Meet.
Alcantara is the country's winningest bet in age-group and junior lawn tennis event where he already won numerous championships in recent overseas outings.
"Ganahan gihapon ko modula sa Tubod Palaro kay taga didto man dapit sa Kapatagan akong Lola," said Alcantara in his usual humble demeanor.
Like Alcantara, however, secondary basketball coach Edgardo "Boy" Dacoco has considered Iligan as their logical threat for the throne.
"Iligan among bantayonon kay kami sab ilang gibantayan," said Dacoco who has the 6-foot-4 stalwart Philip Paredes from Sacred Heart of Jesus Montessori School (SHJMS) to boost his frontline.
The slam-dunking Paredes, the prize catch of Oro Chowking manager Ferdie Padilla and Dacoco in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon, is expected to stir the basketball crowd anew in Tubod.
Other hot prospects from COAA are 13-year-old sensation Lennon Hart Salgados of Christi Christi and the equally-strong Antonio Chavez Jr., 16 of CDO-National High School who will team up for the first time in regional Palaro chess.
