Kalei Mau gets Philippine passport as SEAG stint looms

MANILA, Philippines – Kalei Mau formally secured her Philippine passport, putting her a step closer from representing the country in the 30th Southeast Asian Games.

Mau, the 6-foot-1 spiker of Cocolife in the Philippine Superliga, obtained her passport Monday that made her a dual citizen eligible to compete in the biennial meet set in Manila from November 15 to December 10.

“I am proud to announce that I’m now a citizen of the Philippines,” said Mau, who took only a month for the process to be completed as her mother is already a Filipino citizen.
Sources said Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas, Inc. Peter Cayco already talked to her Sunday night to inform her that she made the cut in the 21-woman national pool.

Aside from her, reportedly included in the expanded pool are Filipino-Americans Alohi Robbins-Hardy and MJ Philips.

The composition of the pool will be formally announced in a press conference on Friday.

“Mr. Cayco already talked to them and they all agreed to join the national pool,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“With the presence of these Filipino-American players, we’re all optimistic that we could either match or surpass our bronze-medal finish in the SEA Games in 2005.”

In a previous conversation, Cocolife coach Joshua Ylaya stressed that Mau is very much willing to represent the country.

In fact, part of her objective in returning to her roots is to represent it in international competitions, especially in the biennial meet that has been ruled by Thailand since the Filipinas won the gold in 1993.

“Representing the country in international competitions is one of the reasons why she decided to play here,” said Ylaya.

“She’s doing everything and showing her best every game to prove that she deserves a slot in the national pool.”