By Rjay Zuriaga Castor
The province of Iloilo can soon host its own sports events outside the confines of the Iloilo Sports Complex in Iloilo City, following the groundbreaking ceremony of a sports complex facility in Janiuay on Tuesday, April 11.
The sports complex will be constructed inside the Janiuay National Comprehensive High School with the lot area donated by Former Mayor Frankie Locsin.
The construction of the facility was pushed by the Uswag Ilonggo Party-list with support from the provincial government and Iloilo 3rd District Rep. Lorenz Defensor.
“This sports complex will be for all the athletes of the province. We saw that our athletes in the province still have to travel to the city just to train,” said Uswag Ilonggo Party-list Rep. Jojo Ang.
Ang added that the state-of-the-art facility will cater to school sports events, community gatherings, and cultural activities.
The availability of a comprehensive sports complex will also allow for a broader and more specialized physical education curriculum, which can contribute to the overall development of students, he added.
“Now we will have the first-ever Olympic stadium and an Olympic track oval which will soon be added with an Olympic-sized swimming pool, dorm facilities, and training facilities so that the third district of Iloilo will be the center for sports in the province,” said Iloilo 3rd District Rep. Lorenz Defensor.
A budget of P80 million was allocated for Phase 1 of the project, which includes a 400-meter track and field and a grandstand.
“The area is perfect because it is inside an educational institution, and our students can benefit from this,” Defensor added.
The target completion date for Phase 1 of the project is by the end of 2024.
With the construction of the facility, the two lawmakers hope that Ilonggo athletes may have improved chances of securing sports scholarships for higher education based on their performance at the new facility.
