This could be another story of Cool Running. Remember the Jamaican team that was sent at the Winter Olympics? 2010 could be Philippine’s year.
Who would have thought that sending a Philippine team to the Winter Games in Vancouver next year is not really that a far fetched idea?
The first Philippine Figure Skating Championships which will be held at the SM Mall of Asia, will showcase the country’s finest figure skaters, both homegrown and overseas. More than 30 ice skaters from Pasig, Makati, Las Pinas to California and Arizona will converge at the Mall of Asia International Skating Rink to vie for the honor of representing the country at the 2009 Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf, Germany this September.
Competition is expected to be keenest in the men’s and women’s senior divisions where the champions get to compete with other great skaters all over the world in the last qualifying event sanctioned by the International Skating Union for the 2010 Winter Olympics to be held in Vancouver, Canada early February. Six more slots to the Olympics are up for grabs. If we make it, it would be a first for the Philippines under the Figure Skating category.
Sharing the spotlight with the RP figure skating competitions is the First Philippine International Ice Hockey Tournament 2009, a partnership between the SM Sports and Leisure Group and the First Philippine Ice Events (PIE) Org.
The event has drawn five teams from the Philippines, Qatar, China, Thailand and Japan, which aims to introduce local fans to the exciting and thrilling sport of ice hockey.
The hosts will be represented by Label 5 and the Manila Predators, who will be challenged by the Qatar Qanucks, Shanghai Red Guards and a composite squad of the Bangkok Flying Farangs and Tokyo Canadians.
While popular in North America, particularly in Canada, where it is considered the national passion, and Scandinavian countries such as Norway, Finland and Iceland, ice hockey is a growing sport and increasingly becoming popular even in tropical countries like the Philippines.
Both events will alternately be held at the 61 x 30 square-meter SM Mall of Asia skating rink, now considered among the top rinks in Asia, and are open free to the public.
These twin events will be alternately held July 19 and 20, (Saturday-Sunday) at the SM Mall of Asia.
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SM Mall of Asia Hosts the 1st Philippine Figure Skating Championships