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UGLY PROGNOSIS

Philippine sports sick, says PSC’s Ramirez

By Julius Manicad

07/25/2008

Not even the ideal backdrop of peace and harmony could deny the state of Philippine sports, and it remains the sickest man in the region that Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman William “Butch” Ramirez wants to give time to convalesce before we could even dream of winning an Olympic gold medal.

“Philippine sports is sick,” was Ramirez’s prognosis yesterday, even claiming results of various programs introduced by the National Sports Associations (NSA) have lagged in comparison with neighboring Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and even tiny Hong Kong.

Ramirez said the Philippines lacks experts in the truest sense of the word, claiming NSAs have developed very few coaches with masteral degrees in their respective fields.

Ramirez pushed for the advancement of the Philippine Sports Institute, saying an additional degree in sports management would give national athletes, coaches and top sports officials better chance to improve local sports.

During the signing of a bilateral agreement between the PSC and the Spanish sports ministry yesterday, Ramirez also admitted the country’s top sports officials and some national sports association (NSA) leaders are not in the position to lead, putting the country way behind its Southeast Asian neighbors in terms of production during major international tournaments, like in the upcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Patterned after the Australian Sports Institute, the PSI has been in existence for more than 10 years but was reactivated only in 2006.

The PSC has spent a significant amount from its dwindling National Sports Development Fund, including P10 million for the purchase of brand-new computers and P5 million for sports-related books to establish the country’s first electronic sports library.

“Philippine sports is sick, it may be hard to admit, but it is the reality,” Ramirez said before a handful sports officials which include Spanish dignitaries and the PSC board of commissioners. “If we will base it on their degrees, I don’t think our sports leaders are capable of leading because they do not have a masters or a doctorate degree to back them up.”

“Coaches should also take up additional units in sports management, so they will deserve their title as ‘coach.’ Hindi ‘yung former athlete ka, then bigla ka na lang naging coach dahil loyal ka sa NSA mo.”

Ramirez also slammed sports officials who are joining the Olympics as junkets.

The PSC has earmarked a total of P30 million to finance the training and preparation of the 15 Filipino athletes. The PSC, however, is expecting a “return on investment” through a gold medal.

“There should always be a return on investment,” Ramirez said. “They have spent government money, so they are accountable to the Filipino people. And if we feel that the NSAs are not functioning, then I think we should divert our money to other means, like grassroots program.”