Benefits for national athletes and coaches

Published in Daily Tribune on July 30, 2021
by: Juan Romulo R. Taleon

On 26 July 2021, SSgt. Hidilyn Diaz became the first Filipino athlete to win the coveted Olympic Gold since the Philippines first joined the Olympics in 1924. She brought overwhelming joy to the Filipino people with the prestige of bagging the first gold and breaking the world record to boot, achievements that will forever be etched in our history books.

Her victory entitles her to a P10 million incentive under Section 8 of Republic Act 10699. But what is this RA 10699? This law, otherwise known as the “National Athletes and Coaches Benefits and Incentives Act”, provides full benefits and incentives to national athletes and coaches. It aims to promote excellence in sports by looking after the welfare of national athletes and coaches competing for the country by providing benefits and incentives for national and other athletes who win in international sports competitions and bring honor and recognition to the country. Section 9 of the said law also grants to the coach of the winning athlete a cash incentive equivalent to 50 percent of the cash incentive received by the winning athlete premised on the fact that the coach must have personally trained and rendered service to the winning athlete or team in international competitions at least six months prior to the international competition. SSgt. Hidelyn, in addition to the cash incentive, is also entitled to receive a scholarship at her option in any state university (Section 5). Retirement and death benefits are included in the grant of benefits which are extended to her coach as well.

As defined under the law, “National Athletes shall refer to athletes including athletes with disabilities (AWD) who are Filipino citizens, members of the national training pool, recognized and accredited by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), the PSC (Philippine Sports Commission), and the NPC PHIL (National Paralympic Committee — Philippines) and PSC for AWD, and have represented the country in international sports competitions. National Coaches on the other hand are coaches of national athletes, who are Filipino Citizens, members of the national coaches training pool, recognized and accredited by the PSC and the POC, or the PSC and NPC PHIL and, in the case of AWD coaches, those who have represented the country as official coaches to national athletes in international sports competitions.

Section 4 of the said law provides for additional benefits and privileges for registered National Athletes and Coaches as follows:

a. The grant of 20 percent discount from all establishments relative to the utilization of transportation services, hotels, and other lodging establishments, restaurants and recreation centers, and purchase of medicine and sports equipment anywhere in the country for the actual and exclusive use or enjoyment of the national athlete and coach;

b. Minimum of 20 percent discount on admission fees charged by theaters, cinema houses and concert halls, circuses, carnivals, and other similar places of culture, leisure and amusement for the actual and exclusive use and enjoyment of the national athlete and coach;

c. Free medical and dental consultations in government hospitals and similar establishments anywhere in the country;

d. Coverage in the National Health Insurance Program (NHIP) of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) through the sponsored program of the PSC;

e. A comprehensive social security program to be formulated by the Social Security System within 180 days from the approval of this Act;

f. Priority in existing livelihood programs being undertaken by various government agencies subject to the guidelines and qualifications by the implementing body;

g. Priority in national housing programs, affordable “pabahay” loans and other housing opportunities subject to the guidelines and qualifications set by the National Housing Authority (NHA) or the Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF); and

h. Use of living quarters and training centers set up and maintained by the PSC for the exclusive use of national athletes while preparing and training for international competitions.

Such privately-owned establishments shall enjoy tax deductions equivalent to the discounts extended to the national athletes and coaches subject to rules and regulations issued by the Secretary of Finance, as recommended by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue.

Compared with the glory that our victorious athletes bring to the Philippines, the benefits and privileges accorded them by RA 10699 seem to pale into insignificance. Token badges of appreciation though they may be, these benefits and privileges nonetheless signify the heartfelt gratitude of the Filipino nation for the victories our national athletes and coaches share with us.