Two Olympians, one Paralympian among 19 world-class athletes included in second batch of Atletang Ayala

Atletang Ayala Batch 2

The Ayala Group reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Filipino athlete through the second batch of its Atletang Ayala program, which is overseen by the Ayala Foundation.

From its inaugural group, the program, which supports their sports training while offering opportunities for career development in the Ayala group, named nineteen athletes to comprise its second batch. All of them showed promised and have made an impact representing the country in major competitions.

In making the announcement, Jaime Alfonso Zobel de Ayala, AC Mobility CEO, says "Through the Atletang Ayala program, the Ayala group seeks to inspire more Filipinos to pursue their athletic dreams and bring the nation together through sports."

Ayala Foundation President Tony Lambino adds, "Atletang Ayala is the group's investment in the next generation of sports leaders who will influence and inspire others to excel in whatever field they choose."

For the current batch, the group is led by a couple of Olympians, and a Paralympian.

Joanie Delgaco, the first Filipina Olympian rower, shares about being a part of the program, "Atletang Ayala will help me a lot in terms of extra support for my training here and abroad. It will also help me as a professional in the Ayala group, in terms of new skills and knowledge imparted by the program."

Para-taekwondo jin Allain Ganapin, who also made it to Paris earlier this year, adds, "I see that the Atletang Ayala program will help us in training, conditioning, and nutrition, and will bring us to world-level competitions so that we can become an Olympic and Paralympic medalist in the future."

Aside from Ganapin, fellow Olympian Kurt Barbosa was also selected. Barbosa made it to the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, and is among six jins who made the cut. Joining the two are Baby Canabal, Dave Cea, Laila Delo, and Veronica Garces.

Three members of the inaugural batch of Atletang Ayala are back as part of the second batch, with two of them coming from fencing: Noelito Jose Jr., and Nathaniel Perez are joined by three more athletes in Sammuel Tranquilan, Nicole Cortey, and Janna Catantan, the younger sister of Penn State standout Sam.

The other member from the inaugural batch is Abby Bidaure. She is one of two archers in the program alongside Jonathan Reaport.

Comprising the remaining members of the second group of athletes are shooters Amparo Acuña and Franchette Quiroz, judokas John Ferrer and Leah Jhane Lopez, and wrestler Jason Baucas.

As part of the Atletang Ayala program, eligible athletes will be provided with augmented resources for training and competition, while at the same time, enable them to have opportunities for career growth in the corporate world.

Aside from full-salaried employment with flexible work arrangements for the upcoming Olympic cycle, the athletes will be covered by Healthway Medical Network’s Athletes’ Health program, which includes physiotherapy, strength and conditioning, and sports psychology; gain access to world-class sports and fitness facilities at the Ayala Vermosa Sports Hub in Cavite; and receive fixed support for international training camps and competitions. In addition, they will also actively participate in sports-related and volunteer programs of various Ayala companies and Ayala Foundation.

These athletes would be distributed to the variety of companies under the umbrella of the Ayala Group, which includes Ayala Corporation, Ayala Land, Bank of the Philippine Islands, Globe Telecom, ACEN, AC Health, AC Logistics, AC Mobility, Integrated Micro-Electronics, and the Ayala Multi-Purpose Cooperative.