SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – This freeport plays host anew to the NCAA Season 99 beach volleyball tournament, having been the site of the prestigious collegiate event since 2012.
The tournament will be held at the Subic Bay Sand Courts from Jan. 24 to 28, utilizing the area that was once the battleground of the best beach volleyball players from Southeast Asia during the Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) in 2019.
Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority deputy administrator for administration Atty. Ruel John Kabigting said admission is free for any beach volleyball fan who wish to root for their teams during the games. He added that the continued hosting of Subic for the NCAA beach volleyball tournament is a testament of the agency’s thrust to help budding athletes become part of the national talent pool.
“Subic Freeport is incomparable to any other place in the country. The sand, sea and mountains are great venues for various sporting events such as triathlons, duathlons, epic bike races, marathons, and of course, beach volleyball,” he said.
“We are proud and honored to be the host of the event, and I hope that Subic Freeport remains the host for this event for the centennial season next year. It is also a great honor for us to cultivate the younger generation of athletes and make Subic their second home,” he added.
Kabigting thanked the tournament organizers for promoting Subic Bay Freeport as their preferred sports destination, citing that their continued patronage of the area shows how much they trust the agency. He added that the SBMA is complete in terms of emergency responders, as well as competent security officers that keep the event safe and secure.
Jose Rizal University is the host of the tournament with management committee chairman Paul Supan leading the organizing of the event. “We have an exciting tournament ahead of us. This year, we brought back our junior division so there are now three divisions: men’s, women’s and junior,” he said.
Supan noted that the reason why the organizing committee chose this Freeport is that Subic provides the appropriate atmosphere and ambience of holding the beach volleyball event. He added that one of the players to look out for is Emilio Aguinaldo College’s Louie Ramirez who is a promising talent to become part of the national team.
According to NCAA beach volleyball event chairman Peter Cayco, 12 persons represent each of the 10 schools. However, since some schools brought their staff along with them, the delegation is now at 200, yielding a full capacity for billeting hosts Bayfront Hotel and Terrace Hotel. This also caused a spillover to nearby hotels such as Subic Park hotel and Seorabol Grand Leisure Hotel.
“The spillover to other hotels happened since some of the players came along with their families and friends. This is certainly good for the economy since Subic Bay Freeport is a brand name in the sports tourism sector,” he added.
