Senator Bong Go has signalled the Senate’s readiness to craft new legislation on athlete safety if investigators uncover weaknesses in how sports training programs are run, following the drowning deaths of two Ateneo de Manila University men’s basketball players in Aurora.
“If a law or policy is needed to prevent this, we are ready to address it in the Senate,” said Go, who chairs the Senate Committee on Sports.
Rene Clert Baterbonia, 19, and Divine Adili, 21, died on Monday, June 8, during a Blue Eagles team-building activity in Dipaculao. Baterbonia was a recent Palarong Pambansa MVP who had just committed to the Ateneo program, while Adili was a Nigerian foreign student-athlete who saw action in last year’s UAAP Season 88.
Go pressed government bodies and sporting organizations to dig into how the two young men lost their lives, saying the public deserves a clear accounting. “Many questions need to be answered to get to the full truth. I join in the quest to know all the facts,” he said.
The senator backed the Philippine Sports Commission’s decision to call an urgent meeting on the matter, treating it as a necessary first step toward understanding what went wrong.
For Go, who has spoken often about his own background in sports, the loss carried a personal weight. “As an athlete and basketball player since my youth, this incident is painful for me,” he said, after offering his condolences: “I extend my deepest condolences to the bereaved families and loved ones of Rene Clert Baterbonia and Divine Adili.”
He framed the protection of young athletes as a non-negotiable duty for institutions and regulators alike. “The safety of all our athletes and young sports enthusiasts in their training is of utmost importance to me,” Go said, adding that whatever the findings, “we hope that it will result in valuable lessons to prevent a repeat of this tragedy.”
Go also noted a personal connection to one of the victims, a fellow Mindanaoan, and said he had already reached out to the bereaved. “I have also spoken to Rene’s mother, Ma’am Rovelyn Baterbonia, and I have extended my support to their family,” he said.
