* CHINESE WOMEN'S CHAMPION JOINS PPT PALAWAN LEG

ThE women's champion and six top male players of the People's Republic of China will be seeing action in the Puerto Princesa Mayor's Cup scheduled on June 16 to 22.

Ms. Li Jia, a Chinese player based in Japan, became the first female player to join the ten ball event, which is open to both sexes.

The male players are Li He-Wen, Fu Jian-Bo, Zhang Shu-Chun, Wang Ming, Dang Jin-Hu and Jiang Yang-Yi.

Li and Fu are familiar names in the annual 9-ball world championship and the Guinness pool tour. Li made it all the way to the semifinals in the 2006 WPC in Manila.

Organized by the Billiards & Snooker Congress of the Philippines, the Puerto Princesa Cup is divided into two stages. Stage 1, the Elimination Round, will take place at the Star Billiards Center on June 16-17. Stage 2, the Main Tournament, moves to Puerto Princesa City, where 32 players will compete for the top prize at the Puerto Princesa City Coliseum on June 20-22.

The seven Chinese players will all see action in Stage 1.

Hosted by Mayor Edward S. Hagedorn and presented by San Miguel Beer, the Puerto Princesa Cup offers a prize fund of $30,000. First prize is $10,000. All players who make it to the group of 32 are guaranteed cash prizes.

Dubbed as "the City in the forest" because of its location amidst well-preserved forests and lush vegetation, Puerto Princesa has hosted many major sports events in the country, including the recent Palarong Pambansa. It has wide appeal to athletes and sports fans because of the chance it provides for both sports competition and a holiday in a resort.
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