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Olympic qualifiers, hopefuls are priority after PSC slashes athletes' allowances

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Camille B. Naredo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/life/06/02/20200602-psc-chairman-william-butch-ramirez.jpg"/><figcaption>PSC chairman William &quot;Butch&quot; Ramirez. File photo</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) vowed to continue taking care of Filipino national athletes, particularly those who have qualified or are likely to qualify to the Tokyo Olympics, even after making the &quot;heartbreaking&quot; move of cutting their allowances in half. The PSC announced last week that they had to reduce the allowances of national athletes and coaches by 50%, as the National Sports Development Fund (NSDF) has been considerably diminished because of the ongoing novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.&quot;It breaks our hearts,&quot; PSC chairman William &quot;Butch&quot; Ramirez said of their decision to slash allowances. Speaking in the online Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum on Tuesday, Ramirez assured that as soon as it is possible, they will give the athletes and coaches their full allowances once again. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://sports.abs-cbn.com/football/news/2020/06/02/fifa-signals-support-game-floyd-solidarity-messages-68536">READ: FIFA signals support for in-game Floyd solidarity messages</a></li></ul>&quot;&#x27;Pag bumalik na &#x27;yung pera galing sa PAGCOR (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation), ibabalik namin sa mga atleta,&quot; he said. &quot;It is the people&#x27;s money, and that money is intended for the athletes, both grassroots and elite.&quot;The bulk of the PSC&#x27;s budget comes from PAGCOR, a government-owned corporation that remits 5% of its gross income to the PSC as mandated by Republic Act 6847. According to Ramirez, they would regularly receive P150 million per month from PAGCOR, but that source of money has dried up as gaming operations were shut down due to the pandemic. &quot;Noong March, bumaba siya, naging P99 million. Tpaos noong April, P9 million,&quot; said Ramirez.The 50% reduction in allowances applies to all national athletes, even those who are currently based in other countries, said Ramirez. However, he made it clear that the PSC will continue to look out for the Filipino athletes who have already qualified for next year&#x27;s Olympic Games, as well as those who have a strong chance of making it.Four Filipino athletes are already assured of berths in the Tokyo Olympics: gymnast Carlos Edriel Yulo, pole-vaulter EJ Obiena, and boxers Irish Magno and Eumir Marcial. Among those who have a strong chance of qualifying is Olympic silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz.&quot;Sa amin, kung may pera kami, tuloy-tuloy ang tulong, commitment namin sa qualified sa Olympics,&quot; said Ramirez. &quot;Kahit &#x27;yung hindi pa qualified na malakas ang chances, tuloy-tuloy po &#x27;yun.&quot;&quot;Just last week, we just sent more than P1 million to Hidilyn Diaz, as reimbursement,&quot; he added. &quot;&#x27;Yung mga atleta ng track and field, swimming na hindi pa sigurado, baka maapektuhan &#x27;yun.&quot;&quot;But for those athletes na malaki ang chances to qualify, &#x27;yun muna ang prioritize namin. And priority &#x27;yung mga qualified sa Olympics, &#x27;yung apat,&quot; he also said.Marcial and Magno are both in the Philippines, while Obiena is in Formia, Italy, and Yulo is in Japan. Diaz remains in Malaysia, where she continues to train even after the cancellation of a qualifying tournament in March that would have likely sealed her spot in Tokyo.Ramirez assured that the Olympic athletes, and the rest of the Philippine national team, will get their full funding once the National Sports Development Fund is replenished.&quot;It&#x27;s people&#x27;s money, intended for the athletes,&quot; he stressed. &quot;Ibibigay po namin &#x27;yan.&quot;For more sports coverage, visit the <a href="https://sports.abs-cbn.com/">ABS-CBN Sports website</a>.

The PSC vowed to continue taking care of Filipino national athletes even after making the "heartbreaking" move of cutting their allowances in half.

The PSC vowed to continue taking care of Filipino national athletes even after making the "heartbreaking" move of cutting their allowances in half.

Olympic qualifiers, hopefuls are priority after PSC slashes athletes' allowances

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Olympic qualifiers, hopefuls are priority after PSC slashes athletes' allowances

Camille B. Naredo,

ABS-CBN News

Published June 02, 2020 05:34 PM PHT

Read More:

Philippine Sports Commission

Team Philippines

Butch Ramirez

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