Sibol, the national esports team of the Philippines, has officially launched its campaign for the upcoming 32nd SEA Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from May 5-17, 2023.
The launch took place during a press briefing hosted by the Philippine Esports Organization (PESO), where they unveiled the team's new hashtag, #TaonNgTagumpay, which will encompass all of Sibol's campaigns for 2023, including the Asian Games and International Esports Federation Championships.
PESO also provided updates on the team's training journey and revealed the official 2023 jersey.
With aspirations of securing more titles, medals, and wins for Sibol, PESO executive director Marlon Marcelo expressed confidence in the team's relentless training and their ability to continue making a mark for Filipinos on the global esports stage.
"This year, we’re gunning for more titles, more medals, and more wins for Sibol. The team has been training relentlessly and I’m confident we’ll continue making legacies for Filipinos in the global esports map," he said.
PESO, as the country's national governing body for esports, is responsible for qualifying, training, and sending Filipino esports athletes to international competitions such as the SEA Games and Asian Games.
It has been a member of the International Esports Federation (IESF) since 2012 and a regular member of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) since 2022. Sibol, powered by Smart, made its debut in the 30th SEA Games and has since secured major sponsors such as RealMe, PLDT, Cignal, TV5, and Acer Predator.
Expressing their support for the dedicated and talented athletes representing the country, Ralph Andrei Llabares, Sibol Overall Headcoach, stated that they believe in the team's capabilities to dominate the global esports world and are optimistic about Sibol's potential to become legendary.
"It’s an honor to support dedicated and talented athletes that train tirelessly to represent our country. We have always believed in their capabilities to dominate the global esports world, we’re optimistic that Sibol will continue to become legendary in the global esports world," Llabares said.
Present at the press briefing were team captains, coaches, and members from various games, including MLBB Women's and Men's teams, Wildrift, PUBG, Valorant, and Crossfire.
After weeks of rigorous qualifiers, Sibol finalized its roster in March 2023, consisting of 47 athletes and 7 coaches who will represent the Philippines at the upcoming regional sports meet.
Sibol will compete in 7 medal events at the 32nd SEA Games, including League of Legends: Wild Rift, PUBG Mobile Team and Individual, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang for both men and women, Crossfire, and Valorant. The first batch of delegates is scheduled to fly to Hanoi in the first week of May.
Jabs Escutin, Sibol General Manager, who also trained the 2022 Sibol delegates, is leading the training for the new roster of athletes.
Escutin emphasized the rigorous selection process to ensure the best players for Team Sibol, and despite coming from different teams and playing different titles previously, they are now united by the shared goal of defending their titles and winning more gold medals.
"We really wanted to have the best players for Team Sibol and the intense tryouts made sure of that. We may have come from different teams playing different titles previously, but now we are united by the shared goal of defending and winning more gold medals," says Escutin.
Sibol is determined to defend its gold medals in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and League of Legends: Wild Rift, while also aiming to improve their performance in other games.
Last year, Sibol also won silver medals in League of Legends (PC) and Crossfire, and secured a third-place finish in the overall esports division, with Vietnam and Indonesia taking the top two spots respectively.
