1st PRFU ChildFund Pass It Back Cup to Explode @ CHMSC by: James U. Sy Jr.

Some of the rugby trainees for the first season of an innovative sport for development program managed by ChildFund and in partnership in the country with the Philippine Rugby Football Union (PRFU) (PRFU ChildFund Pass It Back Cup photo).

Rugby trainees having fun in the the first season of an innovative sport for development program managed by ChildFund and in partnership in the country with the Philippine Rugby Football Union (PRFU) (PRFU ChildFund Pass It Back Cup photo). The 1st PRFU ChildFund Pass It Back Cup will be hosted by the ChildFund Pass It Back on August 5, 2017, 9:00 A.M., at the Carlos Hilado Memorial State College (CHMSC)-Talisay Campus. 25 teams represented by more than 250 athletes from Bacolod, Bago, and Talisay cities will see action in the event which is the culminating event of the first season of an innovative sport for development program managed by ChildFund and in partnership in the country with the Philippine Rugby Football Union (PRFU). Internationally, the ChildFund Pass It Back is in partnership with World Rugby, Asia Rugby, and Women Win. The program, which was launched for the first time in the Philippines in February 2017, trained 20 young adults, with no rugby or life skills coaching experience, to become PRFU coaches and deliver an integrated rugby and life skills curriculum that promotes young people’s health and well being, and provides important leadership and life skills learning opportunities. ChildFund is a global alliance of child-focused development organizations working in 63 countries to reduce child poverty and promote children’s rights. The ChildFund Pass It Back Partnership is led by ChildFund Australia, working closely with ChildFund Japan and other ChildFund Alliance members, to expand the Program’s impact across the region. ChildFund Japan leads the ChildFund Pass It Back program in the Philippines for ChildFund, with the support of ChildFund Australia. ChildFund Pass It Back, which is a part of the Rugby World Cup 2019 IMPACT Beyond program, seeks to grow and develop the sport across Asia, leading up to the first Rugby World Cup scheduled in the region. ChildFund Pass It Back's safeguarding practices won the UNICEF Safeguarding Children in Sport Award from the Beyond Sport Awards, according to PRFU Secretary General Ada Milby. Milby noted that the program met a 50% minimum participation target with girls, which is a very big win for the union and for women in sports. The Australian Government, through its Asia Sports Partnerships (ASP) initiative, supports the program in the Philippines. A press conference with Bacolod sportswriters has been scheduled by PRFU Development Officer Anne Sajorne for August 4, 2017, also at CHMSC-Talisay Campus. Sajorne disclosed that a delegation from the Japan Rugby Football Union featuring top level athletes is expected for the event. Rina Munsayac, ChildFund Japan Philippine Office Country Director, revealed that, “This partnership has been a learning experience for all stakeholders involved and we are looking forward to see all the hard work come together in such a special event.”