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POC claims own money ready for SEAG

By Julius Manicad

10/31/2009

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The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) yesterday said it has the money to fund additional athletes it is sending to the 25th Southeast Asian Games in Laos in December.

“We’ll just announce it after we have raised it,” POC president Jose “Peping” Cojuangco said during the weekly SCOOP sa Kamayan session in Padre Faura. “The needed funding is not yet in my hands. But it’s already there to be picked up.”

With the inclusion of 94 athletes and 85 officials from the initial list that the Philippine

Sports Commission (PSC) has approved, the Olympic body needs P5.64 million to send the 379-man Team Philippines to Laos for the smallest SEA Games ever.

The POC pegged the expense at P70,000 per athlete, which covers their registration fee, airfare, food and hotel accomodation and daily allowance. The PSC has doled out P30 million, good enough to finance its approved 200-man squad.

Cojuangco said they have been talking to some potential sponsors in the private sector to raise the amount with merely a month left before the biennial meet unfolds. In fact, after striking a deal with a Chinese apparel company as the team’s official outfitter, the POC already has a shortlist of prospects that could shoulder bulk of the expenses.

“Ilalabas na lang namin yun kapag nadyan na,” he said.

SEA Games chief of mission Mario Tanchangco said the organizers, led by deputy Prime Minister Somsavath Lengsavath, ruled that the submitted lineup is already final, but could still be increased. The extended deadline for the submission of entry lapsed yesterday.

The POC, however, refused to announce the breakdown of the competitors per event, explaining that they are still in the process of finalizing the lineup.

“We’re not yet done,” Tanchangco said. “We want Mr. Cojuangco to be the one to release the names and the breakdown of athletes per sport. We’ll submit it before the organizers later today (yesterday).”