Members of the Masbate team that dominated the athletics’ meet of the recent Batang Pinoy National Championship vow to make their presence felt in the 2023 Palarong Pambansa when it gets going on Monday in Marikina and Pasig.
Masbate collected 11 golds, six silvers and seven bronzes to claim the no. 1 position and dominate track and field competitions when the games were held in Vigan, Ilocos Sur last December.
Fifteen-year-old Leonalyn Compuesto, Masbate Sports Academy’s fastest runner, who swept all her five events in the Batang Pinoy, is entered in the secondary girls’ 400-meter run, and will be among Region V’s best bets in the country’s annual interscholastic sports meet.
Her teammates, Realyn Lanuza, Jesalyn Materdan and Alessandra Capellan, took the 4x400m relay gold and are entered in separate events, with Lanuza taking part in the 100-meter sprints.
Materdan is entered in the 800-meter run and Capellan is expected to make a splash in the 110-and 400-meter hurdles.
Their coach Regine Batoy-Librando said the girls have been giving their best performances since December and are expected to be at their best again, following their arrival in Manila on Friday.
Also expected to make an impression in the secondary girls’ side are Nicol de Lara (2000-meter walk), Erica Magallanes (triple jump), Courtney Trangia (discus throw), and France Rapsing (3000-meter steeplechase).
More than 9,000 student-athletes and officials from 17 regions are taking part in the Department of Education-organized event which is making a comeback after three years of hiatus due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Marikina City mayor Marcy Teodoro, in a statement said, the city government worked tirelessly to ensure the success of the Palarong Pambansa, which carries the theme “Batang Malakas, Batang Matatag”.
“The DepEd entrusted us with such huge tasks and the city government of Marikina accepted to take on this enormous challenge and responsibility of hosting this prestigious national sporting event. Despite the limited capacity of the city, we still have the ability to host the Palaro,” he added. Peter Atencio
This year, officials of the DepEd, said an additional tier called the pre-national qualifying meet has been added “to lessen the number of delegations, shorten the duration of the event, and lower the expenses to be incurred — all without sacrificing the level of play.
The new tier will only feature team sports such as baseball, basketball, football, futsal, sepak takraw, football, and volleyball. Peter Atencio