Sacrifices and hard work reap fruits for RP jins
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 13 Dec 2009
The Philippine taekwondo team?s four-gold medal production was just what national coach Ricky Samson expected.
?We sent only 10 athletes so I told myself I would be happy to win four gold medals,? Samson said Sunday by way of assessing his jins? impressive performance in their sport where two-time Olympians Tsomlee Go and Mary Antoinette Rivero and teammates came up with a 4-4-4 gold-silver-bronze medal harvest to become the winningest team in the 251-athlete national contingent.
Samson quickly added though that they could have produced more had luck went their way in terms of officiating.
?We could have brought home a pair of gold medals more sana, pero okay na din. Winning four gold medals is already a big achievement,? said Samson.
Led by Go and Rivero, the national jins turned the biennial meet into their own show as the charming troika of Camille Alarilla, Rannie Ortega and Janice Lagman opened the Nationals' campaign by stashing away with the gold medal in the women?s poomsae team competition.
Then, heavyweight Alexander Briones, lady welterweight Rivero and featherweight Go followed suit, dominating their respective events in the sparring side of the competition to surpass their predecessor?s dismal lone gold-medal show in the last edition of the biennial conclave two years ago in Thailand.
Japoy Lizardo (flyweight) and Eunice Alora (bantamweight) could have also snared the gold had judgement calls not intervened. Jeffrey Figueroa, who won the gold medal in the bantamweight class of the Asian Martial Arts Games few months back, also was potential gold medal but was ranged with Vietnam and Thailand early on.
It was a matter of the team members and the coaching staff working hard together, Samson said.
?While we really expected a fruitful campaign, it was borne out by our united belief that performance is more important than winning a medal. We?re playing in a subjective sport so we know that the medal will just be a bonus. What is important is our performance."
? Those victories came as rewards for our athletes sacrifices and hard work,? he said.
(Eddie Alinea's articles also appear in the PHILIPPINE GAZETTE)
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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