Senator Juan Edgardo Angara commended Filipino athletes who won medals in the recently concluded 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta, adding that they also deserve cash awards under the law for bringing pride and honor to the country.
“We would like to congratulate and commend our athletes with disabilities as well as their coaches and trainers for their outstanding performance. The cash rewards they will receive are well deserved under the expanded athletes' incentive law,” Angara said.
Under Republic Act No. 10699, which Angara authored, Filipino athletes, including the differently abled, and their coaches are entitled to cash incentives as a way of recognizing their achievements.
The Philippines ranked 11th in the medal standing of the Asian Para Games, hauling 10 gold, eight silver, and 11 bronze medals as the meet ended Friday last week.
Under the law, winners in the Asian Para Games will receive the following cash awards: P1 million for gold medalists; P500,000 for silver medalists; and P200,000 for bronze medalists.
Prior to the enactment of RA No. 10699, winning differently-abled athletes were granted only token incentives because they were not covered by the old National Athletes Incentives Law.