It’s game time as the Jr. NBA Philippines 2017 presented by Alaska returns to the Philippines. On its 10 th year, the Jr. NBA is set to t...
It’s game time as the Jr. NBA Philippines 2017 presented by Alaska returns to the Philippines. On its 10th year, the Jr. NBA is set to tip off on January 21, Saturday, at the Don Bosco Makati.
Alaska’s
partnership with NBA Philippines is in line with Alaska’s commitment to
promoting sports and outdoor play in the Philippines.
“The
Jr. NBA Program is a great fit with Alaska’s mission to nurture young
talents and to promote healthy and active lifestyle through sports and
outdoor play,” says Wilfred Uytengsu, Alaska Milk Corporation President
& CEO.
Based
on the 8th National Nutrition Survey in 2013 by the Food and Nutrition
Research Institute (FNRI), obesity is one of the most prevalent
nutritional problems of Filipino children with about 5 out of 100
Filipino children are overweight.
Given
the growing issues on health, Alaska believes that there is a need to
reinforce its thrust in leading a healthy lifestyle not just by drinking
milk but by living actively through sports and other outdoor
activities. Alaska seeks to engage the Filipino consumers, especially
the youth, through its sports development programs to help nourish
children to become champions.
“With
Alaska as our partner, the Jr. NBA program has reached hundreds of
schools and communities nationwide and benefited thousands of children,
parents, and coaches through grassroots activities like basketball
training camps and school clinics, NBA Cares outreach projects,
television programs and online initiatives,” says NBA Philippines
Managing Director Carlo Singson.
This
year, thousands of students, parents, and coaches are expected to
benefit through the Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA activities. The program is composed
of four stages: the school and open clinics, the Regional Selection
Camps, a National Training Camp and the NBA experience trip.
The
schools and open clinics will be held nationwide from January through
March. Clinics will be held in Bacolod, Batangas, Cagayan De Oro,
Cavite, Cebu, Metro Manila and Subic. Select players from these clinics
will get the chance to showcase their talents during the Regional
Selection Camps, which will be held in Cagayan de Oro City on February 11-12, Lucena City on February 25-26, Cebu City on March 11-12, and Makati City on April 1-2.
From
the Regional Selection Camps, the top 37 boys and 37 girls will advance
to the National Training Camp in Manila. The National Training Camp
will have (names of NBA/WNBA talents) in attendance to help train the
pool.
In
the end of the National Training Camp, eight Jr. NBA and 8 Jr. WNBA
aspirants will be selected to comprise this year’s All Stars. They will
travel with fellow Jr. NBA All-Stars from Southeast Asia for a unique,
overseas NBA experience later in the year.
The
Jr. NBA Program is the international youth development program of the
NBA. It aims to promote basketball participation, sportsmanship,
teamwork and active lifestyle among children. It emphasizes fundamental
skills development and the formation of STAR values – Sportsmanship,
Teamwork, Positive Attitude, and Respect.
The
program is free and open to children ages 5 to 14 years old. It
provides children the opportunity to showcase their talent, improve
their skills and be trained under Jr. NBA coaches, and participate in
friendly matches with high school varsity teams from abroad.
With
the success of the Jr. NBA program in the Philippines, Alaska’s mother
company FrieslandCampina, extended its partnership to cover 4 countries
in Asia – Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. In 2014, Alaska
launched the Jr. WNBA program to widen the reach of the sport to girls
all over the country.
Interested participants and coaches may register online through www.jrnbaphilippines.
To learn more about the Alaska Milk Corporation, visit www.alaskamilk.com and w
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