The elimination round of Ecclesiastical District of Tarlac City, Tarlac’s edition of the Unity Games concluded on August 15 and 16, 2026.

This was for the games of basketball, played on the first day, and volleyball the next day.

Nine clusters of congregations vied for qualification for the finals. The competitions were held in four venues: the Centro Tibag court in Brgy. Tibag for Tarlac City and Sapang Maragul clusters, the Bulo covered court in Victoria for Amucao-San Jose and Victoria, the Bana covered court in Matatalaib for Maliwalo and San Juan de Mata, and the Paraiso covered court for Paraiso and Sapang Tagalog.

Aside from the 39-and-below and 40-and-above categories in both sports, volleyball also had men and women subcategories.

The organizers, which included the district Christian Family Organizations (CFO) officers, prioritized the safety and preparedness of the players, ensuring that they were fit to play, according to Pheasheyn Gamboa.

While the activity was competitive, the brethren “strengthened their camaraderie while developing teamwork, discipline, and sportsmanship,” remarked Brother Dennis Quitlong, a minister of the gospel.

Having gained first-hand experience of this, Freraq Paulo Navarro, a player from the San Jose Congregation, attested, “Aside from the competition, we, the players, learned to trust and support one another. It also encouraged us to give our best while showing respect to our fellow players.”

“This activity brought us closer to our fellow brethren,” agreed Jocelyn Manalili, a player from the Tarlac City Congregation. “We enjoyed competing with one another, but more importantly, we learned the value of teamwork, discipline, and sportsmanship.”

Advancing to the District Unity Games finals to be held next month were: Paraiso, Maliwalo, Amucao–San Jose, and Tarlac City for basketball’s 39-and-below and volleyball’s 40-and-above (men’s) categories, the latter three also joined Sapang Tagalog in 40-and-above (basketball) and 39-and-below (volleyball-women’s) categories.