More than P1 billion is expected to fuel the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) next year, a significant increase that could accelerate the agency’s plans, programs and services intended for the national athletes.

PSC Chairman Richard Bachmann said the amount will come from the 2025 General Appropriations Act, also known as the national budget, for the PSC’s National Expenditure Program from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

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“According to the [DBM], it is historic that the PSC is actually getting more funding,” said Bachmann, pointing out that no insertions were made by legislators to increase the PSC budget.

“This will be geared toward all our programs and athletes for next year,” added Bachmann.

The biggest event for national athletes will be the 2025 Southeast Asian Games late next year.

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Improved facilities

That’s apart from the continental and world championships that athletes from at least 60 sports are bound to participate, beginning with the Asian Winter Games in Harbin, China, from Feb. 7 to 14.

In just two years in office, Bachmann has already become part of national sporting history, serving as chair of the sports funding arm during the Paris Olympics, where two-time world champion gymnast Carlos Yulo brought home two gold medals.

Boxers Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas added a pair of bronze medals, amplifying the success of Team Philippines for the second straight Olympics after weightlifting’s Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo claimed the nation’s first gold medal in the quadrennial Games in Tokyo 2020.

The national team’s string of triumphs can also be credited to the continuous improvement of the facilities controlled by the PSC—the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex (RMSC) in Manila and the Philsports Complex in Pasig City.

“We have started to build the gym and dormitories for boxing and pencak silat [at the RMSC] as well as fixing the gallery and bleachers of the Rizal ballpark,” said Bachmann.