A PUBLIC servant, actor, sportsman and a taekwondo Olympian.
For the many hats he’s wearing, Monsour Del Rosario is most proud of his legacy in the sport that made him what he is today.
On Thursday night, the Makati City representative reached the pinnacle of his achievement in the Korean martial arts after being named 2017 Man of the Year in the world for a prize athlete in taekwondo and inducted into the sport’s Hall of Fame.
“I’m very excited about this accolade and overwhelmed to make our country proud again,” said the eight-time national taekwondo champion during the awarding ceremony at the Kukkiwon World Taekwondo headquarters in Seoul, Korea.
No less than Kukkiwon president Oh Hyun Deuk handed him the award and the distinction of being the first Filipino, and non-Korean, to be given such prestigious honors since the award’s inception in 2010.
He was accompanied in Korea by his wife Joy and grandmaster Sung Chon Hong.
“I’m very proud that my name will be in the world taekwondo museum for along as the museum is still standing in Seoul. The last time I was here was in 1993 when I was training with the Philippine team,” he said.
Del Rosario, who bagged a bronze medal in the 1986 Seoul Asian Games and reached the quarterfinal round in the 1988 Seoul Olympics, has also been inducted into the Hall of Fame for being one of the world’s best taekwondo jins in the 1980s.
In the national scene, he was undefeated in the lightweight division from 1982 to 1989 before he was asked by the Philippine taekwondo officials to promote the sport as an action star—with so much success.
Currently the secretary-general of the Philippine Taekwondo Association, the 53-year-old Del Rosario showcased his outstanding leadership when he steered the country to its best finish in the Asian Indoor and Marti Arts Games (Aimag) in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, with a total haul of two gold, 14 silver and 14 bronze medals as the delegation’s chef de mission.
His colleagues at the House of Representatives also approved a resolution passed by the Taguig City, District Two representative Pia Cayetano, commending him for his Man of the Year award.
“I’m deeply grateful and honored,” added Del Rosario.”
