TO BOLSTER its bid for hosting the Batang Pinoy National Games in 2026, the Bacolod City Government has unveiled its new Multi-Purpose Center and Bacolod Skate Park in Barangay Vista Alegre on Saturday, October 4, 2025.
The turnover ceremony was led by Mayor Greg Gasataya, Bacolod City Lone District Representative Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, some members of the City Council and barangay officials.
The project, which cost P241 million, was implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-Western Visayas in 2023.
It features a two-story sports center, complete with a ticketing office, spanning a total floor area of 3,141 square meters, which it aims to serve as a dynamic hub for both athletic and community events.
Adjacent to this is a state-of-the-art skate park covering 1,355 square meters.
Gasataya highlighted the importance of these new facilities in the city's preparations for the upcoming Batang Pinoy National Games.
“Sports is our priority, and this will be a big help. Eventually, this can become a training center for skating and other sports,” Gasataya said.
The complex includes a basketball court, a multi-purpose function hall, rental spaces, an administrative office, storage rooms, kitchen and food preparation facilities, showers, and laundry areas.
Benitez also noted the resurgence of interest in skateboarding due to the new venue.
“Their interest is finally back, and we’re hoping Bacolod can soon produce internationally recognized athletes,” Benitez said.
The Bacolod Skate Park is set to become a magnet for skateboarding enthusiasts from across Bacolod and Western Visayas.
It joins an elite group of only four major skate parks in the Philippines, reinforcing Bacolod’s growing prominence in the national skateboarding scene.
Cindy Lou Serna, a member of the national skateboarding team and previously had to train in Manila, also expressed her excitement about the new facility.
“It’s a big help for the skateboarding community because we no longer need to travel or train far,” Serna said.
Bacolod City earlier expressed its interest to the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) to host the 2026 Batang Pinoy National Games.
The Batang Pinoy was inaugurated in Bacolod City in 1999 through Presidential Executive Order 44 signed by then-President Joseph Estrada on December 2, 1998.
It is an annual national youth sports program for athletes 15 years old and below. (MAP)