New Clark City to host 11th Asian swimming championships

By Joanna Rose Aglibot

The upcoming 11th Asian Age Group Championships will be held in New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac from December 3 to 14.

Jojit Alcazar, the president and chief executive officer of the Organizing Committee of the event, said this edition is targeted to be the biggest, with about 1,400 expected participants from over 40 countries. 

It is also expected to boost local tourism, with an estimated 5,000 foreign visitors and 35,000 local tourists. 

The 11th Asian Age Group Championships will include four aquatic disciplines, namely swimming, diving, water polo, and artistic swimming.

It will also serve as a qualifying event for the Paris 2024 Olympics.  Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) Senior Vice President for Corporate Services Arrey A. Perez said the Asian championships will give the Philippines a chance to showcase the New Clark City sports complex and promote the facilities to the members of the Asia Swimming Federation (AASF).

Perez highlighted New Clark City’s readiness to host events, armed with well-maintained facilities and gaining experience from the 2019 Southeast Asian Games and the multiple local tournaments it hosted in the past year.

“Our venues are considered world-class facilities. The Aquatics Center is certified by FINA (now World Aquatics), and the Athletics Stadium is certified by IAAF (now World Athletics). They are well maintained, we’ve maintained their categories as Class 1, very clean, and we’ve made some improvements when it comes to ensuring that the events that are being hosted are done in a more efficient manner,” Perez said. 

According to Perez, AASF Secretary General Taha S. Al Kishry had expressed his intent to continue promoting New Clark City and entice more federations to hold their swimming meets here.

“They are really promoting here in Asia because they want to have more competitions, particularly in Southeast Asia, as there aren’t a lot of competitions held here,” said Perez. 

Perez added that the Asian Age Group Championships could also serve as a trial to determine if New Clark City is also capable of hosting the World Aquatics Championships. 

The sports complex has hosted a total of 38 local sporting events and 37 training camps since New Clark City reopened to the public in May 2023 after the pandemic-driven lockdowns. FREEPORT INSIDER