PH TO OFFICIALLY HOST 2028 ASIAN BEACH GAMES

After over 70 years, the Philippines will once again become the center of a major continental event as it has officially taken over hosting duties for the 2028 Asian Beach Games during the closing ceremony of the 6th edition in Sanya, China, Thursday night.

Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino received the Olympic Council of Asia flag, symbolizing the formal transfer of hosting rights to the country.

This development follows the official contract signing held earlier in China, where Tolentino and Olympic Council of Asia President Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani sealed the agreement for Cebu City to host the 7th Asian Beach Games in March 2028.

“We are very excited para sa bansa natin to have actually two big events, YG (Youth Games) next year December, then after three months, Asian Beach Games.” Tolentino said.

The country aims not only to stage a world-class competition but also to showcase Filipino hospitality and culture to athletes expected from 45 Asian nations as it will be the country’s first continental multi-sport event since the 1954 Asian Games in Manila.

The strong performance of Team Philippines in Sanya landed fifth overall with three gold, four silver, and two bronze medals, beating its previous record of 2-4-15 in the 2016 edition in Da Nang, Vietnam.

Alexandria Luz Enriquez captured the country’s first gold medal in the jiu-jitsu women’s ne-waza 63kg division, followed by Leonard Grospe’s gold in the men’s high jump competition, and the third gold from Annie Ramirez in the women’s 57kg jiu-jitsu final.

Silver medalists include the Gilas Pilipinas 3×3 women’s team, windsurfer Dhenver John Castillo, jiu-jitsu fighter Emily Thomas, and the women’s relay team composed of Jessica Rose Laurance, Kristina Marie Knott, Lianne Diana Pama, and Shane Ponce. While bronze medals came from Laurance and Kaila Napolis in the 60-meter dash and jiu-jitsu respectively.

Tolentino emphasized that the Philippines’ natural advantage in beach sports, given its abundance of coastal areas, will be key in preparing for the 2028 games.

“It also showed that we’re used to playing in beaches. We have lots of them in the Philippines. We should maximize it. This would be a good preparation for our hosting in 2028. Again, we beat our previous record,” he said.

The country is now gearing up to deliver a successful and memorable Asian Beach Games in Cebu.