Senate OKs bill creating Philippine High School for Sports

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has approved on third and final reading a bill seeking the establishment of a dedicated national high school offering a secondary course with special emphasis on developing the athletic skills of the students through subjects pertaining to physical education and sports development.

Voting 21-0-0, the Senate approved on Wednesday Senate Bill No. 1086 or “The Philippine High School for Sports Act of 2019.”

According to Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, chair of Senate committee on education, arts, and culture, the passage of the measure will help “train and develop future generations of world champion Philippine athletes.”

Despite the fact that Filipinos love sports, Gatchalian noted that the Philippines has been lagging behind other countries in sporting competitions and events citing the country’s failure to deliver an Olympic gold medal despite taking part in the Summer Olympic Games since 1924.

The senator stressed that Filipino athletes lack the support they necessarily need like other countries give to their athletes.

“The end view of this legislation is to unleash the potential of young Filipinos who have shown the early potential of excelling in sports for a sports-related career,” Gatchalian said.

Gatchalian explained that the Philippine High School for Sports (PHSS) would be a “world-class educational and athletics facility which is at par with international standards.”

Under the proposed law, the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) will be mandated to provide the land for the PHSS at the New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac and will be in charge of the construction of classrooms, dormitories, other sports facilities, and related amenities.

The PHSS will offer full or partial scholarship programs to students who have demonstrated the potential of excelling in sports. At the same time, it will provide its students with quality secondary education in their chosen track and will be under the supervision of the Department of Education.

Edited by JPV