Sports and sports tourism events in the country are expected to improve after representatives from 20 higher education institutions finished a two-week sports management and tourism short-course training in Malaysia.

At least 26 sports faculty members from 20 HEIs joined the short-course at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).

These include representatives from Bukidnon State University, Sorsogon State University, Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University, Mariano Marcos State University, Romblon State University, Laguna State Polytechnic University, Occidental Mindoro State College, Southern Luzon State University, Bicol State College of Applied Sciences and Technology, Isabela State University, Cagayan State University, Palawan State University, Panpacific University, Sulu State College, Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology, First City Providential College, Colegio de San Juan de Letran, University of the Philippines Diliman, National University, and Philippine Normal University.

These universities have already hosted major sports events in the country including Palarong Pambansa, the State Colleges and Universities Athletic Association (SCUAA), Private Schools Athletic Associations (PRISAA), University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), as well as regional and national sports competitions.

The short course includes the Organizing Major Sports Events and Promoting Sports Tourism program, which intends to “upskill” participants with the science behind sports tourism, alongside its financial and administrative challenges from local to international level.

It also covered planning and execution of major sports events, practical problem-solving, decision-making exercises, and case studies.

Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chairperson J. Prospero de Vera III, in a statement Tuesday, said training of the representatives from various HEIs nationwide was funded by the agency.

He said the program “was developed consistent with the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) work plan on sports for 2021-2025 and affirms the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Sports declaration on the importance of sports in community building and achieving the sustainable development goals.”

“CHED is proud to collaborate with UKM in contributing to these regional undertakings and to help strengthen the Philippine sports industry,” he said.

“We look forward to how our participants can now plan and implement follow-through activities in their HEIs, and athletic leagues, and partner with local governments when they go back to the Philippines,” he added. (PNA)