The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) looks forward to discovering more world-class gymnasts to follow the footsteps of Olympian and World champion Caloy Yulo, as it welcomes the opening of the new Gymnastics Center in Intramuros, Manila Saturday.
“The PSC Board believes in our gymnasts to haul in more accomplishments in the coming years. This is why we support them in ways that our limited resources could. Last year, Caloy showed the world the true grit of Filipino athletes, fighting and winning despite injuries in another championship. Our collective efforts in developing sports can produce more Caloys in the future,“ said PSC Chairman William “Butch” Ramirez.
Since the present administration came in 2016, the PSC has given more than Php 71 million to the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines to cover expenses for the team’s international competitions, training, equipment, training supplies, and other expenses.
The said amount is on top of releases covering allowances of athletes, local coaches and trainors, which in 2021 alone amounted to P7.9 million. In addition, foreign coaches receive P287 thousand monthly in salaries and allowances.
PSC has spent Php 2.2 million for the training center rental expenses of national gymnasts in 2021 and January 2022 alone. The new facility will serve as the training ground for Yulo and other members of the national team.
The 22-year-old Yulo, who is a product of the PSC’s Batang Pinoy and Philippine National Games programs, honed his talent and skills inside the gymnastics center at the historic Rizal Memorial Sports Complex (RMSC) before he finally became an Olympian and a world-class athlete in the sport.
In his guesting at the PSC weekly radio show “PSC Hour” aired Fridays on Radyo Pilipinas, the world champ thanked the sports agency for its support, “thankful po ako sa PSC na nandyan po sila sa likod ko. Hindi ko po ito lahat magagawa kung wala po sila. Kasama po sila sa aking family, coaches, NSA at sa iba pa po na sumusuporta sa akin. Maraming, maraming salamat po.”
“We thank Caloy for raising the bar high for Philippine gymnastics. It just proves that hard work is the key to the fulfillment of a dream. I hope he inspires more youth to pursue their dreams and motivates us to further expand our grassroots program,” added Ramirez.