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| SM Cherry Turf Mandaluyong, the first rooftop football pitch in the Philippines (Image Source: Manila Bulletin/Optimal Athletics Inc.) |
Optimal Athletics Inc. is a sports recreational start-up company that aims to promote sports, recreational and social activities as well as to construct and establish recreational sports facilities. It wants to be known as an influential and significant group that delivers innovative experiences in the sports industry, helping push the development of sports further with next-level ideas. Optimal Athletics aims to create opportunities and help mold the development of sports in the Philippines by connecting with different partnerships that share the same vision of creating a new path for sports in the country for years to come.
Its first major project is the country's first rooftop football pitch using FIFA-preferred producer LIMONTA Artificial Turf at SM Cherry Turf in Mandaluyong supported by its venue partner SM Malls for a game-changing shopping and malling experience. Founded by OAI President and Chief Executive Officer Kevin James Olayvar and Chairman Raf Gastador under Cherry Turf Philippines, the entire pitch will have an approximate area of 1,141.87 sqm while the entire playing area will have a 1,002.89 sqm of space ideal for 7-aside games. It will also be installed with a roofing and shading system while the top and side of the pitch is set to be covered by high impact nylon netting very much similar to the Adidas Futsal Park in Tokyo, Japan.
OAI has an existing community built from different organized events it hosted in the Metro. It also plans on creating a league/series that would become the staple event of the Cherry Turf, with an aim to engage existing communities and also incite interest and create new groups within the community to experience football, as well as creating multiple levels for everyone to enjoy from kids to working adults and catering to all levels of experience, beginner, intermediate, and professional. It also maps out to develop the entire rooftop not just focus on the pitch, creating an environment that’s welcoming for both football and non-football enthusiasts for a place where people can sit back, relax, eat and drink while watching people play football.
This project would push innovation in the sports scene in the Philippines, not just in football but in other sports as well. “We would be opening an opportunity that would soon be discovered and explored, we plan to take hold of this chance and be the pioneers of this setup. There’s more to sports, we plan on moving from the plain sports experience and introducing newer and innovative ways to enjoy them,” OAI said in a statement.
