Around 2,000 national athletes, para-athletes and coaches underwent training in hands-only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and drowning response Thursday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.

The training was conducted through a partnership between Bell-Kenz Pharma and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) under the “Sagip CPR” program, which aims to equip participants with life-saving skills for emergencies both on and off the playing field.

The initiative supports the Samboy Lim Law, which was enacted following the cardiac arrest of basketball legend Samboy Lim in 2014.

The Department of Health (DOH), National Youth Commission, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Philippine Life Saving also partnered in the program.

Aside from athletes, Coast Guard personnel were given the opportunity to undergo hands-only CPR training as part of efforts to expand the number of people equipped to respond to medical emergencies.

The program also seeks to create livelihood opportunities through water safety training, citing an initiative in Panglao, Bohol, where former fishermen became certified scuba divers.

(News update via RH Tina Nolasco)

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