For the hosts, the Davao City Durians, defending their Davao Region Athletic Association (Davraa) Meet title is practically a given. With a reputation as perennial Davraa champions, their sights are set on an even bigger challenge: surpassing their gold medal count at the upcoming Palarong Pambansa 2024.
Department of Education (DepEd) Davao City Division superintendent Reynante Solitario, in a phone interview with SunStar Davao, emphasized the shift in focus, saying, "Among mission karon, Palaro na among ginalantaw. Dili na Davraa among ginahuna-huna. Gina look forward na namo ang Palarong Pambansa (Our mission now is the Palaro. We're not dwelling on Davraa anymore. Our eyes are set on the Palarong Pambansa)."
While they aim to improve upon their impressive performance at the Davraa Meet 2023, where they secured 174 golds, 109 silvers, and 82 bronzes, Solitario emphasized that winning more gold medals at the Palaro, scheduled for July in Cebu City, is their top priority.
The city's 650-member delegation of athletes and coaches underwent a month-long in-house training to prepare for this challenge.
The training concluded with a send-off event on Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at the Mintal Elementary School and Mintal Comprehensive High School, the official billeting quarters of the Durians.
Solitario explained that while the in-house training was crucial for Palaro's preparation, student-athletes from private schools were allowed to return home for training at their respective institutions.
"Pang Palaro na gyud ang training (The training was intended for the Palaro), we really spent for that," Solitario said.
Challenge
During the opening ceremonies of the Davao City Athletic Association (Dcaa) Meet 2024 on February 28, 2024, at Davao City National High School, DepEd Davao regional director Allan Farnazo issued a challenge to the city division: enhance its gold output in the Cebu Palaro. Farnazo believed that Davao City's performance could uplift the entire region, underscoring the city's strength.
He noted that the city only managed to secure 16 gold medals in the Palarong Pambansa 2023 held in Marikina City, representing just nine percent of its impressive haul of 174 golds in the Davraa Meet 2023.
In a previous interview, Solitario accepted Farnazo's challenge, expressing confidence that Dabawenyo athletes would excel in the Palaro with the support of the City Government of Davao.
`Believe in yourself'
During the send-off ceremony, Solitario reminded the city's athletes to be confident.
"If a million believe in you, but you don't believe in yourselves, wala gyud (nothing). The first to believe in yourself is you," he said. "Paniwalaan nyo ang sarili nyo para ma prove ninyo you can really surpass your previous performance (Believe in yourself so you can prove you can really surpass your previous performance)."
He encouraged them to give their best effort and apply what they've learned from their coaches, trainers, and tournament managers during the competition.
SunStar Davao’s special coverage of the Davraa Meet 2024, which is in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd) Davao Region and the City Government of Davao, is sponsored by the City Government of Mati, Santos Land Development Corporation, Provincial Government of Davao de Oro, Mapua Malayan Colleges Mindanao, and Davao de Oro First District Rep. Maricar Zamora. MLSA