Ebdane launches 3-day Zambales sports festival

CANDELARIA, Zambales, Philippines – Zambales Province opens its pristine waters and powdery magnetite sand beaches to close to 600 participants as it hosts to the Zamba Multi-sports Festival March 18-20 in this town that lies along the coastline of South China Sea.

The three-day affair will feature competitions in cycling, open water swim, ultimate frisbee, sprint duathlon, and triathlon spiced with exciting side events like a body tattoo competition, bikini open and beach party.

“We want people to see how beautiful Zambales is,” Zambales Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane said during the press launch Wednesday night at the Dawal Beach Resort here.

“Zambales is La Union, Siargao and Boracay all rolled into one. We have powdery sands and azure waters and we have probably the cleanest shoreline today. When you go surfing and you fall off your board, you’ll land on sand instead of rocks. So Zambales is indeed a great venue for a multi-sport festival similar to those held in Thailand,” he added.

The Zamba Cycling Challenge, a 120-km road race from Iba Capitol to Sta. Cruz and back, will kick off festivities on March 18. Some 200 riders are expected in the Open and Executive divisions, led by Rustom Lim, bronze medalist in the recent Asian Youth Cycling Championships, and national duathlon team mainstay John Chicano from Sta. Cruz town.

A heavy bill is set on March 19 at the Dawal Beach Resort and Uacon Cove here: the 2-km Open Water Swim ; the National Ultimate Black Sands Frisbee Elimination; Sprint Duathlon (5-km run, 30-km bike, 3 km run); and the body tattoo and bikini open events.

Antonio Vasquez of the Philippine Ultimate Association said the Black Sands Frisbee tourney will serve as a pre-qualifying to the Boracay Open, the most prestigious ultimate competition in the country. It will also mark the first time for a competitive beach ultimate tilt to be held at night, thanks to ready facilities at the Dawal beach, where the magnetite sands offer a dark, nearly blackish hue.

The fest will culminate with the Zamba Black Sand Triathlon on March 20 at Dawal Beach Resort, an open and age-group competition that according to national coach Melvin Fausto will serve as part of the Triathlon Association of the Philippines’ grassroots programs. He said TRAP expects to discover talents for major tourneys like the Youth Olympic Games in this competition.

Zambales provincial administrator Omar Ebdane said the Zamba Multi Sports Festival 2011 is just the start of a continuous sporting activities in Zambales, the second largest province in Central Luzon in terms of land area. Ebdane launches 3-day Zambales sports festival

By Olmin Leyba (The Philippine Star)