Local sports officials weigh in on Tabal’s exclusion from SEAG

Ballesteros

Local sports officials had different takes on the exclusion of Cebuana Olympian Mary Joy Tabal from the athletes’ lineup for the upcoming Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia this August.

The Philippine Track and Field Association (Patafa) announced the decision to exclude the 28-year-old Tabal from its athletes roster on Wednesday, citing the Cebuana’s failure to cooperate with the local track and field association for her inclusion in the national team as the reason.

The multi-titled Tabal from barangay Guba, Cebu City is the first Filipina to compete in the women’s Olympic marathon, representing the Philippines in the Rio de Janeiro Games last year.

Tabal said in an interview after learning about the news that all she wants is to “run for the country.”

Here are what the officials had to say:

Cebu City Sports Commission chairman Edward Hayco:

“It’s sad that some sports leaders are not embracing positive changes but instead, have selected biases. The special treatment they give to Filipino-American athletes, the Azkals and etc. they should give the same to Joy (Tabal). Her only fault is she wants her own training program, her own schedule and Cebu as her training venue. What’s so wrong about that? The Philippine Sports Commission even wants to decentralize, regionalize training centers. If Joy did not make it to the qualifiers, then that’s another story. Meaning her training program is not working but the irony is it is working very well at no cost to the government plus she has an honest to goodness, genuine grassroots program which I don’t see being replicated by the people concerned.”

Cebu City Councilor and Cebu City Deputy Mayor for Sports Jerry Guardo

“That’s very unfair, She just won a race participated by 14,000 runners. In the SEA Games, she was there, she won a silver medal and I think she’s up to par to win in again. This decision from Patafa has so much politics and that’s not a good indication. They only think for themselves. They should recognize her hard work, dedication and investment. There’s so much investment for Tabal and that could be very discouraging for her. They don’t think about the athletes’ future.”

Cebu City Sports Center manager and Milo Little Olympics and Marathon organizer Ricky Ballesteros

“I am sure she will make us proud in the SEA Games. I just hope that she will iron out her differences with Patafa. I think Patafa should also learn on how to listen to her side for the good of Philippine Sports.”

Cebu City Councilor Joy Augustus Young, former chairman on sports

“She should follow PATAFA’s guidelines. I understand Joy’s situation but she should not make her own decisions. She can’t compete without the auspices of the NSA if she wants to become a world class athlete. I am being objective with regards this issue because I already experienced this before during my term that an athlete makes their own decision without the consent of the organization handling them.”