Lanao del Norte is positioning itself as a major sports hub in Mindanao as it prepares to host the inaugural Mindanao Youth Games (MYG) on April 11-17, 2027, bringing thousands of young athletes to the province’s Mindanao Civic Center (MCC).
The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) and the provincial government launched the Games Tuesday in Manila, formally putting the 70-hectare MCC in Tubod at the center of a new regional competition that will bring together athletes 18 and younger from 33 cities across six Mindanao regions. Timor-Leste will participate as a guest team.
PSC Chairman Patrick Gregorio said the MCC’s facilities can help raise the level of competition while giving young athletes from Mindanao a bigger platform.
“When I went there last month, I was really impressed and awed by the facilities. It’s really world-class,” Gregorio said during the launch at the PSC media conference room at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
“We will raise the level of the Games here so that new athletes and future national athletes from Mindanao can be discovered,” he added.
The Games will feature 12 to 15 sports, including football, athletics, swimming, basketball, volleyball, archery, tennis, combat sports and weightlifting.
The MCC has a FIFA-certified football pitch, a World Athletics-standard track and field oval, an Olympic-size swimming pool, a 5,000-seat gymnasium and venues for archery, tennis, combat sports and weightlifting. A five-star hotel is also part of the complex.
Building a sports hub
Lanao del Norte Gov. Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo said the province is eager to work with the PSC to give young athletes better opportunities to compete.
“We're very happy to host the Mindanao Youth Games. And we're very happy to work together with the PSC to bring in better sports experiences for our athletes,” Dimaporo said.
He said the Games also show why national agencies need to work with local governments to develop sports facilities and programs beyond Metro Manila.
“The problem with LGUs is kanya-kanya (The problem with LGUs is that everyone is doing things on their own). What we need is someone at the national level to give us direction. There is no leader until we finally have PSC Chairman Pato,” Dimaporo said.
The MCC will host the MYG for three consecutive years through 2029. The province is also preparing to host Batang Pinoy in 2028 and is considering a future Palarong Pambansa.
The complex previously hosted the 2003 Palarong Pambansa and recently held Premier Volleyball League matches that drew thousands of fans from Northern Mindanao. It also hosted the Mindanao Boy Scouts Jamboree, which brought in more than 3,000 delegates.
A baseball and softball diamond will also be built with support from the PSC and the Philippine Amateur Baseball Association.
PSC Commissioner Fritz Gaston, who oversees the MYG, said the province should maximize the facilities already in place.
“It would be a mortal sin not to maximize these facilities. When we visited, we saw they were built to international standards,” Gaston said. “Nothing here is second-rate, everything is designed to be the best, all the time.”
More than competition
The province sees the Youth Games as more than a sporting event, with officials linking the hosting to sports tourism, youth development and local economic activity.
“We want every tournament we host to be sustainable. As Chairman Pato said, “Paano makakarating ang mga bata sa itaas if they're not even given the chance to compete (how can these children reach the top if they are not even given the chance to compete),” Lanao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Sittie Aminah Dimaporo said.
“Hosting competitions like this sets the standard, inspires our kids, and motivates them to train harder,” she added.
Gov. Dimaporo said the province’s growing accommodation capacity will allow it to welcome athletes, officials and media during major competitions.
Gregorio said taking major sporting events to the provinces can help develop regional training centers and spread sports opportunities across the country.
“People will realize that we don’t only host events in Manila. We go outside Metro Manila, to the Visayas, to Mindanao,” Gregorio said. “The focus is to develop regional training centers. When you upgrade facilities in the provinces, it’s an opportunity to host as well.”
Lanao del Norte 1st District Rep. Imelda “Angging” Quibranza-Dimaporo, who hosted Gregorio and the PSC team during their visit to the MCC last month, called the MYG hosting a long-held aspiration for the province.
“This MYG hosting is a dream that will become a reality for our province,” she said.
She also invited visitors to discover Lanao del Norte.
“I hope our countrymen will consider and put our province on their bucket list. This is the land of beauty and bounty where you will find peace, and where the people are warm and hospitable,” she said.
The province’s accessibility is also expected to improve with the Panguil Bay Bridge linking Ozamiz and Tangub City to Tubod and an airport about 30 minutes away.
Gregorio said the MYG can help the province build a sustained sports ecosystem rather than simply host a one-time event.
“When the MYG was presented to me, I saw an opportunity for the PSC to step in and set the standards for regional sports,” Dimaporo said.
“And the MYG is one of the things that we can do, both as national and as local government units, to set the standard for sports facilities,” he added.
The PSC has identified the MCC as a future regional training hub for football and baseball, providing a pathway for the complex to remain active beyond the MYG. PR
