FILIPINO boxing legend and Senator Manny Pacquiao will join President Rodrigo Duterte as honored guests in the opening of the 2018 Philippine National Games today at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC).
Cebu City and Cebu Province are co-hosts of this weeklong multi-sporting meet organized by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) that serves as one of the qualifiers for the national team.
The opening ceremony, which starts at 2 p.m., will feature a star-studded cast with PSC commissioner Ramon Fernandez leading the lighting of the urn together with selected young athletes. Fernandez, a legend in the Philippine Basketball Association, will be joined by past and present Olympians Roel Velasco, Manuel “Onyok” Velasco, Bong Coo, Django Bustamante, Hidylyn Diaz, Elma Muros Posadas, Monsour del Rosario, and Eugene Torre.
“We have prepared the best opening presentation yet in any PNG hosting featuring hundreds of performers from all over the region,” said Ricky Ballesteros, Cebu City Sports Commission manager and also the Opening and Closing Ceremonies head.
Cebu City last hosted the PNG in 1997 during its third edition, exactly 21 years ago.
Meanwhile, the PSC and several National Sports Associations (NSA) held a referee refresher course at the CCSC badminton court yesterday.
The refresher course catered around 500 technical officials that will handle the 22 sporting events in the meet. The refresher course was done to keep the technical officials updated with latest developments in officiating.