Last
May 14 to 20, 2012, the Toby’s Sports (in cooperation with PLDT-Smart
Foundation) Summer Tennis Festival happened. A week-long completion for budding
tennis players was a success, in fact, it was filled with adrenaline-pumping
action as these kids fought for the win. But despite the rush and excitement,
(and of course, the goal to win) the kids played friendly and fair, something
that sports truly develop in each athlete’s heart.
Toby’s
Sports, the country’s leading sports gear and apparel retail store, is a real
sports advocate. The company truly understands the importance of sports in
every person’s life. It is not simply for the health-buff or for the active
people. Sports can also be a way for the future.
The Ceremonial Serve at the opening of the Toby's Sports and PLDT-Smart Foundation Summer Tennis Festival at Rizal Memorial Stadium |
I
was on the opening of the event and I had the privilege to sit down and talk
with Toby’s Sports Retail Division President, Toby Claudio himself. At a
glance, Mr. Toby is the perfect image for the sports store. He is tall and had
the athletic stand.
When
I met him, he was dressed simply but sporty. But you can sense that he is a
very passionate guy, mostly passionate with sports. I saw him from a distance,
watching the little athletes during the event. His eyes are already sparkling
with pride as he knows these kids are on the right track for a brighter future.
When
I got a few moments with him, my first question was, what was their purpose of
putting up the Toby’s Sports Youth Foundation (the company’s arm responsible
for such sports fest). And his answer was also as simple; he said that the
foundation’s mission was to help kids play.
In
his words, “We firmly believe that sports, fitness and an active lifestyle
should be part of every kid’s childhood…”
He
said that having an active lifestyle developed early in the kid’s life has so
many benefits; one of it is having better health in the future. He addressed his
concerns that more and more kids nowadays are getting obese because of computers
and other gadgets.
The
foundation aims to develop programs and sports clinics to encourage more kids
to live a more active life because kids should go and play; and sports is the
best bet for that. In fact, in sports, kids will not only learn to play, they
can also develop other values such as teamwork, sportsmanship, discipline and
camaraderie. Plus, it gets the kids away from bad vices.
And
for many years now, Toby’s Sports Foundation has been actively involved in
setting up tournaments, not only for tennis but also for three other sports
like basketball, volleyball and badminton; the most popular sports in the
country. But at present, Toby’s Sports is also aiming to expand its sports
development programs to other sports such as football, among others.
Toby's has been active in sports and their affiliate store runnr is active in the running and multisport scene.
ReplyDeleteKudos to Toby’s Sports and PLDT-Smart Foundation for keeping the young healthy and away from drugs!
ReplyDeleteI dont have the skills for tennis, whether it would be on the court or just a table. Kudos to the participants of this program :-)
ReplyDeleteThis is a good program for kids. instead of them sitting in front of hte computer doing nothing, Toby encourages them to be active and healthy by playing sports.
ReplyDeleteI wish I know how to play tennis for real. O__O
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear that some brands are throwing support to tennis. I think we Pinoys can excel in it given the right funding.
ReplyDeleteKudos to this program! :)
ReplyDeleteMy husband is a rabid tennis player and he keeps on pushing our kids to learn the sport too. That would be a lot easier if we had programs like this in our city.
ReplyDeleteYay! Summer sports are really cool. I dont know how to play tennis but I always enjoy watching the players. Hehehe. :)
ReplyDeleteI used to play tennis before, but got lazy as I went on. Well, aside from the fact that my tennis buddy is in abroad na.. hehe
ReplyDeleteI really wanna learn Tennis!
ReplyDeleteKudos to Toby’s Sports Foundation and PLDT-Smart Foundation. We should have more programs like this and support grassroots sports development.
ReplyDeleteI used to train and play tennis when I was a kid, although I did not pursue playing professionally... I think playing sports when I was young really helped me a lot and opened me up to a bigger world. I still play whenever I can now... and I believe that people should get engaged not just into tennis but any other sports... it wouldn't just make you healthier but it can really give you a lot more... like new friends and stress relief
ReplyDeletegreat to here this, koko... that there are people looking for the welfare of kids today. hope they won't get tired of doing this. Yahweh bless.
ReplyDelete