May 4, 2009 (Beijing) – In Manila, the Road of Asia Philippines representative group held a press conference attended by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) Secretary-General Steve Hontiveros, POC Deputy Secretary-General Mark Joseph, POC Treasurer Julian Camacho, and Cultural Attaché of the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines Chen Yongshan, as well as more than 30 Filipino media organizations.

Road of Asia certificate of passage in the Philippines

Representative group presents Road of Asia memorabilia to the POC.

The press conference showcased promotional videos for the Guangzhou Asian Games and Road of Asia. POC Deputy Secretary-General Mark Joseph gave the Road of Asia representatives an enthusiastic welcome. “The Guangzhou Asian Games will be the largest Asian Games ever held. I look forward to seeing the participation of Asia’s best athletes. Asia is the world’s largest continent. The friendship and cooperation we will foster in Guangzhou in 2010 will serve to connect all of us.”

Photo caption:
POC Secretary-General Steve Hontiveros signs the Asian Games well-wish banner.

Photo caption:
Members of the Filipino media sign the Asian Games well-wish banner.

The Road of Asia representative group gave details on the progress made by the Guangzhou Asian Games in such areas as construction, media services, advertising, and market development. During the Q&A session, popular ABS-CBN sports reporter and TV host Dianne Castillejo expressed her concerns about the facilities and media services to be provided by the Guangzhou Asian Games. Having covered the Beijing Olympics, she hopes that the quota for Filipino media personnel could be higher in the Guangzhou Asian Games next year than it was during the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Major Filipino media outlets including The Philippine Star, Filipino Reporter, Business Mirror, GMA, RPN9, and ABS-CBN have maintained a high level of interest in the Guangzhou Asian Games.

Toward the conference’s end, POC Secretary-General Steve Hontiveros signed and placed his seal on the Road of Asia well-wish banner. The representative group then presented Road of Asia memorabilia to Secretary-General Hontiveros. Road of Asia’s Indonesia and Philippines stops have been successfully concluded.