MANILA, Philippines – UAAP Season 88 host University of Santo Tomas looks to hold the league’s opening week right on its own turf.
Faced with logistical challenges as the Philippines hosts the FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship in September, UST plans to use the university grounds for its opening ceremony and host basketball games at the Quadricentennial Pavilion Arena, creating an all-UST week at the start of the new UAAP calendar.
“The opening ceremony will be on a weekday…. We’re looking at the third week of September and the start of the basketball season is in the weekend of the same week,” said UAAP Season 88 president Fr. Rodel Cansancio. “Practically, you have the opening and the start of the basketball week here in UST.”
“It will be like a UAAP week here in UST,” Cansancio added.
The adjustments come as the world volleyball event blocked off regular UAAP venues like the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City and the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Other smaller arenas in Metro Manila like the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan, Philsports Arena in Pasig, and the Rizal Memorial Coliseum and Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila will also be used as practice facilities for the world meet.
This left Cansancio, who is also UST’s Institute of Physical Education and Athletics director, no choice but to turn to the university’s own backyard.
“The choice of having the opening here on the campus is both practical and symbolic. Practical because of the difficulty of finding venues, big venues. Symbolic because we would like to continue the practice of having the opening here on the campus,” he said.
“We have our whole campus as the stage, so we have to use the whole campus,” Cansancio added.
When UST last hosted the UAAP in Season 79 in 2016, the school also held the opening rites in the university grounds and field.
The school’s Quadricentennial Pavilion holds a capacity crowd of nearly 6,000. The venue has also hosted numerous UAAP and PBA games the past years.
In Season 87, then host UP held its opening ceremony at the Araneta Coliseum, where iconic Filipino rock band Eraserheads performed.
Cansancio said the UAAP games will again return to bigger venues in the months following its opening.
In cases where venues are unavailable in the succeeding months, Cansancio said they will rely on the availability of the Quaricentennial Pavilion and the Blue Eagle Gym in Ateneo.
Aside from the opening week, UST also plans to adjust the game schedule late this year, as several players will see action for the national team in international events, including the Asian Women’s U16 Volleyball Championship in Amman, Jordan in November, and the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand in December.
“If there is a request from national teams, then that’s the time we have to decide,” Cansancio said. “We are open to adjust our schedule if there’s a call for the UAAP to help the national team.” – Rappler.com
