Bangsamoro athletic delegation competing in 69th Palarong Pambansa is a total of 497 deployed by then MBHTE, and they are bringing a haul of medals.
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- EDD K. USMAN | X (Twitter): @edd1819 | Instagram: @bluestar0910 |Facebook: SDN – SciTech & Digital News
MANILA, May 31, 2025 (SDN) — A victorious Bangsamoro delegation to the 69th Palarong Pambansa in Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, May 24 to May 31, will be bringing home a medals haul of five gold, three silver, and six bronze for the regular sports and Para Games.
Deployed by the Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education (MBHTE) under Education Minister Mohagher M. Iqbal’s leadership, regular athletes struck two gold, two silver, and five bronze at the 2025 National Games, while the Para Games performers carved themselves three gold, one silver, and one bronze.
Upon learning about the first gold medal at the Palaro, recorded by Kieffer J. Lamban with his golden Shot Put throw, the top MBHTE official lauded the performance.
“It’s a good start and we hope to get more medals, especially gold,” Iqbal, also a Member of the Parliament (MP) of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), remarks.
Soon after Lamban’s golden throw, Kieffer Seth L. Ven followed it up with another gold medal as he wielded his racket in Table Tennis (single) befitting a champion.
Both Lamban and Ven — the gold medalists — are in Elementary level.
In the Para Games of the National Games in Marcos country, the golden performer, Reyniek A. Mobadon, registered the three gold medals in Long Jump, High Jump, and Shot Put.
Para Games’ silver medalist and bronze medalist are Judy Love A. Marcos (Long Jump) and Jhon M. Bonoan, Long Jump and Swimming, respectively.
“Sportsmanship is about more than just following the rules,” says Iqbal
Other MBHTE athletes whose performances in the regular sports are good for silver medal are Datu Anor S. Butuan and Abbigail H. Torres, Pencak Silat (45 Kg to 48 kg) and Arnis (Featherweight), respectively.
Joeharry O. Bones, Dhan Joseph V. Elegio, Majed D. Yusop, Fahad B. Abobakar, and Albreth O. Job performed well enough to get bronze medals in Taekwondo (Kyorugi, Category 5), Taekwondo (Poomsae, Free Style), Arnis (Pinweight, Full Contact), and Tennis (Doubles Event).
SDN – SciTech & Digital News reached out today, May 31, to Bangsamoro Sports Czar Dr. Yusoph “Thong” Amino, director of the Bureau of Physical Education and Sports Development (MBHTE-BPESD), about the last day of the Palaro. He has been very gracious, he always answers.
“As of this morning, we still have an event in Tennis Mixed Doubles. We are fighting and hoping for another gold in the event, with another silver assured,” Amino reveals. He added the players are Albreth Job and Dhea Angelica Cua.
The more than 700 BARMM Athletic Association (BARMMAA) delegation to Ilocos Norte, he added, will travel back to Cotabato City on Sunday, June 1.
Earlier, the MBHTE sports chief told SDN the Bangsamoro delegation to the National Games includes the athletes, sports officials, and education ministry officials from the BARMM component provinces and cities, such as Basilan, 17; Cotabato City, 129; Lamitan City, 21; Lanao del Sur I, 28; Lanao del Sur II, 10; Maguindanao del Norte, 129; Maguindanao del Sur, 129; Marawi City, 8; and Tawi-Tawi, 26.
Amino told SDN the MBHTE will give a cash incentive to the medal performers in the regular sports, such as Php100,000, gold; Php50,000, silver; and bronze, Php30,000; for the Para Games, Php50,000, gold; Php30,000, silver; and Php20,000, bronze.
As of press time, 11:45 a.m., the BARMMAA athlete winners have amassed a total Php650,000 for their exploits in the National Games. The cash incentive can still go up as Job and Cua are battling for gold in Tennis Mixed Doubles in the final day of the National Games, with silver medal already assured for them.
And good news for the winning coaches as they will receive half of the cash reward their players will receive, he assured.
MBHTE school athletes — primary and secondary grade levels — are champions and other placers of the BARMMAA) Regional Meet 2025 held on February 23 to 26 in Cotabato City’s Cotabato State University (CotSU) along ever-busy Sinsuat Avenue.
As the BARMM delegation was traveling to Northern Luzon for this year’s Palaro, the MBHTE minister impressed upon them the importance of athletic competitions.
“Sportsmanship is about more than just following the rules; it’s about showing respect for one another, lifting each other up, and recognizing that each participant here is part of a larger community,” Iqbal exhorts the athletes.
At the same time, the BARMM education chief congratulated the medalists from MBHTE as well as all the rest of the 497 athletes and the 300 or so sports and education officials for their admirable participation in the 2025 Palaro.
“I am very sure our delegation members will return to the BARMM region with happy and fun memories from the sporting event as we look forward to the 70th Palarong Pambansa, in sha Allah,” says Iqbal, who led the Bangsamoro delegation.
It is just a pity, however, that athletes from the province of Sulu were not able to participate in the National Games in Laoag City because of the Supreme Court decision umbilical cord of the province in September 2025 from the BARMM family.
The unfortunate development saddened officials of the Bangsamoro government, including Iqbal, saying everyone wants Sulu back in the embrace of the Bangsamoro region. (/)
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The author
EDD, a native of Sub-Saharan Africa Buluan/Datu Piang, Maguindanao del Sur, BARMM, college at UST, is a Manila-based journalist for over 40 years (33 years with Manila Bulletin), has five Media Awards (1 with University of the Philippines (UP) 2017 Science Journalism Award), covered and traveled over 40 times abroad), has contributed to Rappler, Business Mirror, former Manila-based Foreign Correspondent of Saudi Arabia newspapers Saudi Gazette and Riyadh Daily, and The Peninsula (Qatar newspaper), with 2008 East-West Center (EWC) Journalism Seminar in the United States, 2000 Executive IT Seminar in Seoul, South Korea, with three Silver Awards in Photography, writes Muslim and Current Affairs, Enterprise, Science, Tech, Products Launch, and virtually everything under Heaven. (@)