The world-class sports complex at the New Clark City was cited as the 2019 Sports Tourism Venue of the Year at the Fourth Philippine Sports Tourism Awards (PSTA).
Already on its fourth year, the PSTA recognized “exemplary sports initiatives from the public and private sectors who have shown interest and deep conviction in promoting sports tourism in the country during 2019.”
In a taped message, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat noted that just last year, the Philippines successfully hosted the 30th South East Asian Games (SEA Games) and “New Clark City was put on the map as a world-class venue for sports tourism and a center for national sports development.”
“We’d like to thank Secretary Vince [Dizon] for that. Beyond sports, the city’s development of roads and infrastructure paved the way for its transformation into the country’s newest hub for business and government,” she added.
In his acceptance video, Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) President and CEO Vince Dizon highlighted that the New Clark City hub – the first modern sports complex developed by the government since the 1930s when the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex was built will benefit present and future generations of athletes.
Our athletes and all our aspiring athletes and sports enthusiasts can use these facilities, train in them, use them for events. Our athletes no longer need to travel abroad to use world-class facilities and qualify for sporting events all over the world
Vince Dizon, BCDA President & CEO
Dizon added that athletes “can use these facilities and show that the Filipino is a force to reckon with in international sports.”
“Thank you very much to the Sports Tourism Awards for this honor and recognition and we promise all of our athletes that we will continue to develop this brand-new city so that in the next couple of years, not only will we be able to host the South East Asian Games, but we can aspire to host bigger international sporting events in the future,” he said.
BCDA Vice President for Business Development Arrey Perez at the Clark Marriott Hotel on Thursday evening.
