TEAM AAK-Philippines, led by Philippine Sportswriters Association junior awardee Adam Ortiz Bondoc and Paulo Manuel Gorospe, claimed 23 medals including seven golds to finish fifth overall in the 7th Karate-do Goju-kai Association Global Championship recently in Richmond Olympic Oval in British Columbia, Canada.
Over 500 young karatekas from 24 countries joined the four-day event, with the Philippines composed only of 14 athletes still emerging as the most productive contingent in the International Karate Federation-sanctioned meet.
“To all the AAK players, job well done! Your AAK family is proud of you for all the hardships and sacrifices that you have given this past few months,” said AAK coach and former international champion Richard Lim. “To the ever loyal AAK supporting parents that have been there all throughout the training and in the championships, a big Thank you!”
Bondoc, a Grade 11 International Baccalaureate student and 2017 Junior Athlete of the Year of the PSA, won gold in the Male Individual Junior’s 16-17 years old kumite (sparring) event. He defeated his opponents from Chinese Taipei, South Africa, Canada, and England in the preliminaries, before dominating Shahab Alwi Faris of Indoneisa, 8-0, in the championship match.
Paulo, 8, a Grade 3 student of Xavier School-Greenhills, beat Benjamin La of Canada, 3-2, to claim the gold in the boys’ 7 to 8-years-old individual kata before pulling off another brilliant victory against a Hungarian opponent in the individual kumite.
Nichole Erica Dantes, a 17-year-old student from Colegio San Agustin, claimed the gold in the Bunkai event (participated in by two players and performed the actual combat application of the Kata), before winning a silver in the Open team event and bronze in the individual kumite.
Also showing excellence was 13-year old Matthea Lazo of Immaculate Conception Academy, winning gold in the Individual Girls’ kumite 12 to 13-years-old +50kgs and silver in the Individual Girls’ kata 12 to 13-years-old.
“If you will ratio it according to number of players and medals won, the Philippines would probably rank number 1,” said Lim.
Other medalists are Sakura Alforte of La Salle-Zobel (gold, 14-15 kumite and bronze, kata); Junna Tsukii (gold, women’s open kumite, silver in team kumite and bronze in -50kgs, kumite); Ricca Torres (gold, bunkai team, silver team kumite, silver individual kata); Naoki Alforte of La Salle-Zobel (silver in 12-13 boys’ kata and bronze in kumite); Johan Cancela of Homeschool Global (silver 9-year old kumite and bronze kata); Daniel Cancela (bronze in 12-13 individual kata and kumite).