The Blue Eagle Gym is a gymnasium located in the main campus of the

Ateneo de Manila University , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic ( Jesuits) , academic ...

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,960,048 people. It was fou ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Unlike most gymnasiums, the basketball court is oriented perpendicular to the orientation of the building.

History

The indoor facility was built in 1949, three years before the Ateneo de Manila University moved from its Manila campus to its current main campus in Loyola Heights, Quezon City in 1952. At its inauguration in 1949, it was called the Ateneo de Manila Gymnasium or Ateneo Gym. From late 1960s to mid 1970s, it was officially known as the Loyola Center. It was in the year 2000 that it was renamed the Blue Eagle Gym. According to historical records, the gym was constructed under the direction of Ateneo Rector William F. Masterson, S.J., to be an alternative venue to the

Rizal Memorial Coliseum The Rizal Memorial Coliseum is an indoor arena in the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila, Philippines. Its capacity is 6,100. History The Rizal Memorial Coliseum within the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex was built on the former site of Manil ...

for the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

games. It is frequently a venue for sporting events of the

University Athletic Association of the Philippines The University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), established in 1938, is an athletic association of eight Metro Manila universities in the Philippines. The eight-member schools are Adamson University (AdU), Ateneo de Manila Univers ...

and the

(pre-1978). Ateneo's games, however, were played at the

to prevent any home-court advantage during the school's NCAA years. It was also a venue for

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

games in the league's early years. The

Manila Metrostars The Manila Metrostars were a professional basketball team in the now-defunct Metropolitan Basketball Association from 1998 to 2001. The team was the 1999 MBA National Champions and holds the MBA record of winning 22 consecutive games during the sa ...

of the defunct

Metropolitan Basketball Association The Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA), or Metroball, was a professional basketball league in the Philippines that ran from March 7, 1998, to July 26, 2002. History The MBA played its first game on March 7, 1998, at the Don Narciso Ramos ...

also used the Blue Eagle Gym as a temporary home court before moving to the Mail and More Arena in San Andres, Manila. The Blue Eagle Gym played host to the sepak takraw tournament of the

1991 Southeast Asian Games The 1991 Southeast Asian Games, officially known as the 16th Southeast Asian Games, was a multi-sport event held in Manila, the Philippines from 24 November to 3 December 1991, with 28 sports featured in the games. This was the second time that ...

. It was scheduled to be the venue for women's basketball in the

2005 Southeast Asian Games The 2005 Southeast Asian Games, officially known as the 23rd Southeast Asian Games, was a Southeast Asian multi-sport event held in Manila, Philippines. This was the third time the Philippines hosted the games and its first time since 1991. ...

, but since the

Basketball Association of the Philippines The Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) was the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) recognized national governing body for basketball in the Philippines. It was recognized by the FIBA in 1936 until 2007 when the Samahang B ...

was suspended by

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its nam ...

, the gymnasium was not able to host the event. The gymnasium is the home of the

Ateneo Blue Eagles The Ateneo Blue Eagles are the collegiate varsity teams of the Ateneo de Manila University that play in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), the premiere collegiate league in the Philippines. The collegiate women's ...

's varsity teams. It was used also as a training venue for the 2015 U23 and SEA Games national women's volleyball teams managed by the

Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas, Inc. (lit. Volleyball Sport in the Philippines) was the national sport association for volleyball in the Philippines between 2015 and January 2021. It was recognized by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), th ...

, Inc. (LVPI), whose secretary general, Ricky Palou happened to be a former athletic director of the school. In 2019, the gymnasium was renovated in time for UAAP's Season 82 basketball. Blue Eagle Gym int

References

External links

*
Blue Eagle GymThe Blue Eagle Gym flies again
{{coord, 14, 38, 6, N, 121, 4, 31, E, type:landmark, display=title Ateneo de Manila University Sports venues in Quezon City Educational structures in Metro Manila Indoor arenas in the Philippines Basketball venues in the Philippines University sports venues in the Philippines