Bringing the NCAA to greater heights was the first order of business for Sophia Senoron and Martin Javier when they accepted the job to host ‘Rise Up Stronger: The Road to NCAA Season 96’, the newest sports program of media giant GMA.
The show aims to focus the spotlight on past and present athletes and coaches across different sports while also serving as a platform to bring fans closer to their favorite athletes amid the pandemic.
Senoron, the 2017 Miss Multinational Philippines, shared that the country’s oldest collegiate league has a special place in heart after being able to get her diploma from San Beda University, one of the NCAA participating schools.
And even though she was not an athlete, Senoron still proudly calls herself an NCAA alumna.
“I want to give this league justice,” said Senoron during a media conference on Tuesday.
“It has so much value in my heart. Ang taas ng tingin ko sa NCAA lalo na sa GMA kasi lahat ng nag-work on this project, they really gave it their 100 percent. When you see the show, you’ll see they're giving their 100 percent. So ako naman, gusto ko magbigay ng 110 percent kasi they believed in me to be able to carry this project.”
Javier shares the same sentiments.
Ever since Season 92, Javier has been the voice of the league. The longtime sportscaster is one of the regulars who calls the game in sports events like basketball and volleyball.
That’s why it’s always his vision to promote the league as it finds a new home in the Kapuso network.
“Nag-kick in lang ‘yung pressure noong nalaman ko kung gaano kalaki ‘yung show,” he said during the same conference.
“I mean it’s going to be covering everything, GMA Synergy, GTV, GMA, lahat po ‘yan magsasama-sama para i-promote talaga ‘yung NCAA so that in itself is already a big challenge.”
Javier added that teaming up with Senoron for the show would come with a lot of challenges, especially after the league decided to only hold virtual events like chess and taekwondo for Season 96.
“Lagi po akong kinakabahan kung magwowork ba ‘yung style of hosting ko, magja-jive ba ‘yung personality namin ni Sophia, magwowork ba ‘yung personality ko given, you know, my background and style of hosting,” he said.
“So I think those are some of the challenges that I face.”
Catch Senoron and Javier in the pilot episode of Rise Up Stronger: The Road to NCAA Season 96 starting this Sunday, May 23.
The one-hour program will air on Sundays at 5:05 p.m., Saturdays at 4:30 p.m., and Mondays to Fridays at 2:45 p.m. —Bea Micaller/JMB, GMA News
