This afternoon was certainly a time for celebration between the folks from the Philippine Olympic Committee, SportsP|us and Smart Communications Inc. as they sign a historic Memorandum of Agreement to support national athletes and teams with unparalleled connectivity, more online engagement and visibility in different sports events that they will be in this year and in the future.
The event was graced by James da Costa the head of SportsPlus partnerships, Bambol Tolentino the President of Philippine Olympic Committee, Jude Turcati the First Vice President for PLDT- Smart's Sports. There were also several athletes in the event including Carlos Baylon Jr. Gold Medalist in Wushu in the recent World Games (in China).
SportsP|us' James da Costa says "Standing beside athletes and equipping them with their needs is what we do. From grassroots development, we want to be part of our athletes efforts."
Jude Turcati from Smart says "The MVP has been beyond business to support the dreams of our athletes. The support has given us moments of pride on the world stage. Inspiring the youth, teamwork and resilience, and through this partnership we will get them connected especially when they compete abroad. We will be there every step of the way. We thank the POC and SportsP|us, the best is yet to come, para sa bayan, para sa Pilipino."
POC President Bambol Tolentino says "This is not for me, for POC, but all for our athletes. We put importance in preparations for the SEA Games, Asian Games, and the Olympics. Smart and SportsPlus has always been a big help ever since, and this may produce more medals. We are glad companies still support us, we thank them for their help with the government."
This starts a multi year support for funding the athletes training and preparation for the SEA Games, Asian Games and the Olympics. This will certainly benefit them in their goals to bring honor to the country. The endless pursuit to make sure they do their best in their respective sports and the support of the private sector will surely be a welcome development with various sports organizations that this will benefit. They will also help in the grassroots programs, plus a few local ones which the POC encourages they do in the next few years.