It will be a busy yet productive year for a Guimaras coach as he leads various positions related to sports development in Western Visayas.
This line will surely define the roles and works of Dr. Richard Gabayoyo in the field of sports after his three new appointments and one re-appointment early this month.
The native of Buenavista, Guimaras was appointed by the Philippine Eskrima Kali Arnis Federation (PEKAF) Provincial Director for Guimaras and National Basketball Training Center’s area head for Western Visayas and Dumaguete by coach Eric Altamirano and coach Alex Compton. Aside from the two appointments, Gabayoyo was also renamed sports director of West Visayas State University (WVSU).
More than 200 arnisadors converged at the Iloilo Grand Hotel to attend the 1st ever PEKAF Western Visayas Conference and Oath Taking.
Gabayoyo accepted the role as PEKAF Provincial Director for Guimaras, along with other Ilonggo sportsmen. To recall, the pride of Guimaras also brought competitive sports events to the island province and helped young aspirants in different sports. He is also the president of Darwa Panglima Eskrima Arnis Association, a group of arnisadors in Western Visayas.
“We need to intensify and strengthen the sports activities because awareness through sports activities encourages student-athletes to join competition and enhancing their skills. One will love and passionate about sports if he has developed the skills. Culture of competitiveness will drive athletes to do more in competition,” shared Gabayoyo.
Meanwhile, Gabayoyo also announced that the NBTC committee has decided to postpone the Western Visayas Regional Finals due to the Covid-19 scare.
The original schedule was set on Feb. 22-23 and moved to March 7-8, 2020 in Ibajay, Aklan. The original schedule was turned down by both the Department of Health (DOH) and Department of Education (DepEd) for safety purposes amid the Covid-19 scare. IMT
