STUDENT-athletes of the University of Santo Tomas are set to lose their athletic scholarships as the Dominican school copes with the effects brought upon by the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Sources close to the situation confirmed the report of the school's official publication The Varsitarian, with a yet to be disclosed number of student-athletes being affected in various sports disciplines.
Several athletes are being moved to training pools, reduced from full scholarship to a 50 percent tuition discount.
Spin.ph sought the side of the Institute of Physical Education and Athletics (IPEA) but it has yet to respond.
UST has decided to continue the next term on an "enriched virtual mode," with faculties exploring online and offline modes of teaching.
In-campus classes will only be resumed once the government allows it as previously stated by UST Rector Fr. Richard Ang.
This is the first for a UAAP school after athletic programs of NCAA members and other collegiate sports leagues were affected by budget cuts.
Letran and Perpetual have made adjustments to their sports programs, while the Technological Institute of the Philippines (TIP) scrapped its athletic arm altogether.
The staging of the 83rd season of the UAAP, to be hosted by La Salle, remains in limbo as the league continues to grapple the ongoing repercussions brought upon by the health crisis.
The league's Board of Managing Directors (BMD) have yet to meet on the matter, but have previously stated that they're closely following the developments before making a decision.
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