STAGING training and competition, both on the professional and amateur level, are hard to pull off these days.
There's only a handful of organizations and venues that can mount training and competition that can adhere to the stringent protocols put in place by the government because of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
But if you're determined to mount and have the resources to do so, there's no need to look far as INSPIRE (Integrated Sports Performance, Innovation and Recovery) Sports Academy inside the National University-Laguna campus in Calamba, Laguna can help make it happen.
"We know naman because of the pandemic, it's so difficult to go back to the usual venues for our sporting events. But the whole facility met all the standards of the bubble venue," said head of sales JM Pilares.
A sprawling, world-class facility, Inspire Sports Academy has a football field right by the entrance, two 94 x 50-feet courts which can be used for basketball, volleyball, badminton, or futsal on its third floor with a running track situated above, a state-of-the art weights room, and an annex of the Asian Hospital and Medical Center (AHMC) Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinic.
Aside from that, in the adjacent building is the four-storey Inspire Dormitel which has 32 dorm type and 20 hotel type rooms as well as four executive rooms where athletes can stay for the duration of their planned bubbles.
Just ask TNT Tropang Giga, which staged their preseason trainings here, or the recently concluded Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 League, which held its 2020 President's Cup tournament inside its confines.
"The feedback is positive," said Pilares. "Aside from the world-class facilities we have, the hotel rooms we have are up to par with what players expect the bubble to be."
And the word has started to spread.
National teams, professional leagues, and other collegiate varsity squads have started to inquire about the facilities' availability, which only opened back in September 2018.
Gilas Pilipinas is set to stage its training here come November, pending the clearance from the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for Emerging Infectious Diseases.
Inspire Sports Academy is still expanding, with ongoing constructions still being done around the complex to add a swimming pool and a tennis court.
"We're really just scratching the surface," said marketing director Lee Tajonera. "Aside from all these facilities you're already seeing, we're constructing a pool and a tennis court already and we're gonna have more pa. We just don’t stop with the facilities, we have a lot more programs in place."
Inspire Sports Academy also welcomes individuals who want to maintain their fitness.
"If you're an athlete, you're not just able to train in world-class facilities, but also all these sport science programs to support it. It's the complete package," said Tajonera.
"The goal of the facility is to serve athletes," said Pilares. "We provide a holistic approach to their development. Aside from the facilities, we also have other aspects that athletes need to maximize their full potential. On top of having a world-class facility, it's a one-stop shop to avail of these services. We have programs for different sports."
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