After 22 years without diplomatic representations in the country, the Embassy of Hungary celebrates its reestablishment in the Philippines with a friendly women’s basketball game between its Hungarian Youth Team and a youth team from Manila.
This activity was part of the Memorandum of Understanding on Sports Coordination between the Philippine Sports Commission and Hungary, during the Philippines- Hungary Joint Economic Meeting in Budapest last April 3.
The Ambassador of Hungary to the Philippines, Dr. József Bencze, announced in the welcome dinner hosted by the PSC last Wednesday, that Dr. Tamaz Sterbenz, the Vice Rector for General Affairs of the University of Physical Education in Budapest forged an agreement in sports relations with the Ateneo De Manila University, which also hosted the friendly basketball games and provided billeting quarters to the Hungarian women’s basketball team from the University of the Physical Education- Budapest.
Assistant Director of ADMU Athletics Office Erica Dy expressed that the agreement with their university is a great step in bridging the gap between the two nations.
“This proves that sports is a vehicle to bridge boarders and allow us to work together and do our little part to make this place a better place,” she added.
Dir. Jeffrey Valdez of the Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of European Affairs was also present in the gathering and intimated that sports was one of the firsts among the agreements signed in the Philippines-Hungary Joint Economic Meeting.
The Hungarian Youth Team will play with the university women’s basketball team of Ateneo de Manila University and University of the Philippines in four days of friendly competition.