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THE
Basketball Association of the Philippines-Samahang
Basketbol ng Pilipinas (BAP-SBP) has dropped Fritz
Gaston as head coach of the national women’s
team, reportedly in reaction to a complaint aired by
homegrown players that he was biased in favor of the
Filipino-foreigners.
BAP-SBP
executive director Patrick Gregorio
confirmed Gaston is indeed out of the team and that he
was replaced by his former assistant, Heidi Ong, with
another former deputy, Raymond Celis, handling the
18-under squad.
 Ong
was reportedly one of the prime movers behind the
complaint that stressed that Gaston, who steered the
team to a fourth-place finish in the 24th Southeast
Asian (SEA) Games in Thailand last December, favored
Filipino-Americans Vicky Brick, Melissa Jacob and Amir
Issa, over the homegrown talents.
Gregorio
described the move as “just a part of a long-delayed
plan,” and that the BAP-SBP has given Gaston “full
authority” to run the semicommercial women’s basketball
league and head the National Referees Program.
“Actually, we just elevated his position,” Gregorio
said. “Matagal na dapat ito. We have already
discussed it even before SEA Games that Fritz will
spearhead the women’s league and the referees program. I
guess there’s nothing wrong with it.”
Gregorio
furthered: “As far as I know, there’s no effort to oust
him. Our agreement was settled even before the SEA Games
and this is part of the plan. We realized that he could
concentrate more on spearheading the [women’s] league if
we’ll take him off the team.”
Gaston
could not be reached for comment Wednesday. He
reportedly was nowhere to be seen during the team’s
first regular training last week.
National
Collegiate Championship
REGIONAL
directors of the BAP-SBP are backing up the creation of
the National Collegiate Championship (NCC).
The NCC
has appeared to be the BAP-SBP’s program that would pit
in one tournament teams in the University Athletic
Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and the National
Collegiate Athletic Association.
Gregorio
said the NCC will be headed by former national coach Joe
Lipa and Rey Gamboa. Gamboa has organized the Collegiate
Champions League (CCL) but has agreed to stop staging
the CCL to give way to the NCC.
“We’re
seeing the development of our national association and
we’re just in our 10th month. Imagine what we can do
more in the years to come.
Sana suportahan ninyo ang lahat ng proyekto ng
SBP,” BAP-SBP president Manny V. Pangilinan told the
regional directors in a meeting Tuesday night at the
Astoria Hotel in
Pasig City.
Gregorio
said the NCC will carry the slogan “There can only be
one.” The winner will receive cash from the federation
and, more important, earn the right to represent the
country in the World University Games in Serbia in July
2009.
“This is
more than the merger. Talagang buhay pa ’yung
plano ng
SBP na magkaroon ng totoong national collegiate
championship and we will institutionalized this one,”
said Gregorio.
Based on
the initial format, the champion teams from all regional
tournaments will be seeded along with the top two
finishers in the UAAP and NCAA. Gregorio said the
tournament will start in May and the national finals
will be in November.
Pangilinan has also donated P500,000 to support the
programs of the regional directors of BAP-SBP.
“That
will be their seed money to complement their programs.
Then sila na ang bahalang maghanap ng iba nilang
sponsors dahil gusto rin nating maging
self-reliant ang ating mga regional directors,”
Gregorio added. (With Joel Orellana) |
