The NCAA has ambitious plans of opening Season 96 despite the COVID-19 surge in the country.

NCAA Management Committee (ManCom) chairman Fr Vic Calvo announced on Tuesday, March 23, that the league is targeting to open the season on the first week of May.

“Sigurado ako first week of May pero kasi baka may ibang plano ang GMA,” said Calvo, who also announced that the NCAA is now working with GMA, in the weekly Philippine Sportswriters Association forum.

(I’m sure it will open in the first week of May, unless GMA has other plans.)

However, only a total of 4 sports – online chess, online poomsae, basketball and volleyball – will be staged this year, and the proposal has yet to be approved by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging and Infectious Diseases (IATF).

According to Calvo, taekwondo will be the first event to be broadcasted, followed by online chess.

As contact sports such as basketball and volleyball continue to be monitored by the IATF, the NCAA management committee made back-up tournament plans in accordance to the country’s COVID-19 situation.

The NCAA is considering doing online skills on both basketball and volleyball such as slam dunk, skills and drills challenges, three-point shootout, among others.

According to the ManCom chief, all 10 NCAA schools have also confirmed their participation this season despite the fund cuts, and the committee has also finished eligibility deliberations for poomsae.

In March 2020, Season 95 was prematurely terminated and all ongoing and upcoming tournaments were immediately canceled due to the pandemic. (READ: NCAA Season 95 terminated). – Rappler.com