By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Another volleyball superstar will not be participating in the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) women’s team tryouts.
Considered to be one of the most loyal volleyball athletes to ever represent the Philippines, prized setter Jia Morado turned down the invitation for the national team this time.
“I would have loved to take part in the tryouts scheduled by the PNVF this week in Subic. However, I personally decided to beg off from the tryouts out of an abundance of caution,” explained Morado.
The 25-year-old Ateneo alumnus admitted that the COVID-19 health and safety protocols was the main reason why she made her decision.
In the protocols that she received, it was stated there that all included in the practice pool will be observing a 14-day quarantine before entering the bubble.
However, Morado said that she received the PNVF invite 11 days before the bubble will start, three days short of completing the standard quarantine time.
“In the health protocols sent to us, we were advised to quarantine for 14 days before the event, but I only received this information with 11 days left before the tryouts. This made me feel unsafe to go for myself and for members of my family who are high-risk and live with me at home,” Morado further shared.
Joining Morado who turned down the PNVF invite due to COVID-19 concerns is Alyssa “The Phenom” Valdez, one of the most talented offensive national team staples that is also set to miss the final lineup.
