The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is mulling the possibilities of having the athletes return to face-to-face competitions when the league rolls out Season 97.
NCAA Management Committee chairman Dax Castellano of host College of Saint Benilde bared that the committee members have already started with the planning sessions for next season, which they eye to open early next year.
"We're on the right track. After the resumption of training, with all the approval and analysis and safety protocols, maybe soon or coming next year, we'll see players and athletes live," Castellano said on JP Soriano's 24 Oras report on Friday.
But although the face-to-face games are part of the pipeline, both the league's brass and officials from broadcast partner GMA Network bared that the health and safety of the student-athletes are still of paramount importance.
Oliver Victor Amoroso, first vice president and head of GMA Regional TV and Synergy, said it's important to keep the participants healthy as the country transitions to the new normal amid the pandemic.
"Season 97 will be exciting, especially that we are really targeting to have the sporting events although limited only," Amoroso said.
"The most important thing here is everyone is safe, especially we're transitioning to the new normal and in GMA, we always follow the government policies."
The NCAA will need the approval of the league's policy board members, the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), and the Inter-Agency Task Force in order to hit the ground running for the face-to-face games.
—Bea Micaller/JMB, GMA News
