"Filipino basketball enthusiasts who completed eight sessions of Pibaq Youth Camp in Doha recently".

By: Ailyn Agonia

Photo by: Ronnie Castro

 

DOHA:  AT LEAST 102 young basketball enthusiasts from the Filipino community has successfully completed eight sessions of the recent edition of Pinoy Basketball of Qatar (Pibaq) Youth Camp held at the Al Gharafa Training Gym.

The pool of participants comprised of those in Module 1 or 'beginners stage' (7 to 12 years old) and those in Module 2 or 'more advanced level' (13 to 18 years old).

The programme is regularly conducted by Pibaq to promote basketball among Filipino youth and enhance their skills and potential.

The sessions held on Friday were led by coaches who have previously played professional basketball in the Philippines.

"For the module 1 or the beginners, we stayed with the basic fundamentals of basketball. We practised on basic standing positions, right form of shooting and specially dribbling. For the advance session, we incorporated basic and advanced drills. We focused more on how to attack the opponent's defence, how to read the motion of the defender and anticipate the game situation," said Coach Francis Mercado, Pibaq Youth Camp Program Director and a former PBA (Philippine Basketball Association) draft for Red Bull Barako team.

Mercado also stressed the popularity of the programme especially among parents who wish to engage their children in more worthwhile activities.

"We are really overwhelmed with the result of the camp. Actually, we were still receiving calls from parents asking if they could still register their children to camp. Unfortunately, we had limited slots for this edition," Mercado said.

To encourage more youth participation and to accommodate more children, Mercado added that they are planning to reach out to schools in Doha and extend the camp to Al Khor and Dukhan.

The roster of coaches also included Ferdinan Rodriguez, Jojo Longalong, Willy Layag, Jessie Pangilinan and Vergel Limbitco as Pibaq Youth Facility Coordinator.

 

Source:

Qatar Tribune Daily English Newspaper

102 basketball enthusiasts take part in Pibaq Youth Camp