ORMOC CITY – The city’s premier basketball coaches association formally took their oath last March 25 at Mimay’s Seafood House.
Philippine Basketball Association champion coach Bethune “Siot” Tanquingcen administered the ceremonies.
The Ormoc City Basketball Coaches Association (OBCA), formed December last year, is the first coaches’ association in the city.
Headed by multi-titled basketball coaches Heracleo “Rac” Juba and Cliff Andy Tesocan, OBCA is composed of school-based, barangay-based and aspiring coaches of Ormoc City.
Juba and Tesocan are the organization’s president and vice-president, respectively. Former Philippine Basketball Association defensive stalwart Rey Evangelista serves as adviser and consultant.
Evangelista, the city’s program director for basketball, explained that the association aims to upgrade the capacities and expertise of coaches in the locality.
He also revealed that alongside the improvement of coaches, the association will inculcate values formation into the athletes.
Such development will enable players and coaches to compete healthily, enabling coaches to influence more their athletes to spend quality time in their academics while exerting their best during practices and games.
OBCA also envisions athletes to grow spiritually and know God more.
University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) head coach Albert Alocillo shared that “the Philippines have over 42,000 barangays. Not all of these barangays have churches but for sure, almost all has basketball courts.”
This scenario will steer OBCA to lure children to the hard court not just to play and learn basketball, but to know God and grow spiritually, he stressed.
Evangelista also disclosed that he foresee OBCA to organize tournaments within this year, both locally and regional invitationals.
With the presence of Vice Mayor Wilmar Candido of Hernani, Eastern Samar, Evangelista anticipates a regional league to prosper.
Earlier that day, OBCA held a coaching clinic at St. Paul’s School Gym. Some 47 basketball coaches from different parts of Eastern Samar, Tacloban City and Ormoc City underwent the said activity.
The said clinic was facilitated by Tanquingcen, Alocillo and former PBA long range specialist Al Solis.
(JOEY VINCENT C. MOTEL)
