CEBU CITY – A total of 541 student-athletes from the country’s different regions gathered here on Tuesday  for this year’s Palarong Pambansa.

The eight-day national games opened at the Cebu City Sports Center with a program that started at 5:30 p.m.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. led various government officials who attended the opening ceremony.

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“The Palarong [Pambansa] stands as the country’s pinnacle of national sporting events. Today, we continue this important legacy, celebrating not just the games but also celebrating the unity, the camaraderie, and the national pride that these games inspire,” he said.

“This event is more than just an inter-school [and] inter-regional competition. It is also a platform where we discover, where we develop, and hone future professional athletes, Olympians, and servant-leaders,” he added.

“The values and virtues that will be displayed and put into practice here—such as excellence, teamwork, discipline, perseverance, and most importantly sportsmanship—are the same ideals that we need to succeed in life and build a great nation.”

It had been 30 years since Cebu City last hosted the Palarong Pambansa.

The event will culminate on July 16.

The Palarong Pambansa  is an annual multi-sport event involving student-athletes from the country’s different regions. The event, which started in 1948, is organized and governed by the Department of Education.

Student-athletes from public and private schools at elementary and secondary levels can compete provided they qualify by winning at their regional meet.

For young Filipino student-athletes, the Palarong Pambansa is the culmination of school sports competition, which starts with local school intramurals, followed by the congressional district, provincial, and regional athletic meets.