DAGUPAN CITY—A giant replica of the trophy received by Dagupan City as top performing delegation or champion in the Region 1 Athletic Association (R1AA) meet, mounted at the back of a dump truck, was paraded by athletes and their coaches as well as city officials around Dagupan City Thursday afternoon.
Led by Mayor Belen Fernandez and City Schools Superintendent Lorna Bugayong, the victory parade was participated in by more than 500 athletes, all wearing T-shirts marked “WE MADE HISTORY as R1AA champion”, jogging pants and caps in yellow and blue.
All the principal streets of Dagupan were closed to pave the way for the parade, with Philippine National Police personnel carrying the Philippine flag.
The streets were reopened as soon as the parade ended at the city plaza for a victory program. A party was also set at CSI Stadia in Barangay Lucao, some three kilometers away.
Mayor Fernandez apologized to the motorists and the general public for the closure of the streets to give way to the parade, saying this happened for the first time in many years as Dagupan City finally captured the crown in the R1AA meet.
She was elated that the people of the city lined up the streets to watch the athletes parade their newly won championship trophy.
Finnela Sim, executive director of the Dagupan City Sports Commission (DCSC), said Dagupan expects to win more championships in the R1AA meet.
She said after the victory parade and party, the athleres will go back to their training as they will see action in the Batang Pinoy classic of the Philippine National Games (PNG) in March. (Leonardo Micua/PNA)
