Hangzhou—Derailed by COVID-19 in what could have been his first Paralympic stint in Tokyo, one-armed taekwondo jin Alain Ganapin oozes with renewed confidence as he resumes his drive for Paralympic glory at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games here.
Ganapin qualified for a slot in the Tokyo Paralympic Games in 2021, but a few days before his schedule flight to the Japan capital, he was hit by the COVID-19 virus and was forced to stay in the Philippines.
All the hard work went for naught, but the Marikina native is not stopping in his quest for a stint in Paris next year as he topped the men’s 70-kilogram division of the Asian Para Games Qualification Tournament held in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates to qualify to the 4th Asian Para Games here.
Ganapin said his COVID experience and missing the Tokyo games made him more passionate about training and competing.
“Hindi biro po ‘yung pinagdaanan po namin, especially dahil nu’ng nangyari sa Tokyo na na-miss po namin. Kaya naging emosyonal po ako ng manalo sa qualifying sa Asian Para Games,” said Ganapin in an interview, with personal coach Gershon Bautista by his side.
For the last three months, Bautista said they toiled hard together at the Philippine Taekwondo Association Central Gym inside the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
“He (Ganapin) is better off now compared to three months ago. Kapag sparring, nahihirapan na rin ang mga kalaban ni Alain,” Bautista noted of his tuneup matches with some of the able-bodied national team members, among them celebrated veteran and Southeast Asian Games champ Samuel Morrison.
“We believe he (Ganapin) has achieved a good fitness level for him to perform well in this Asian Para Games,” said the coach, adding that the athlete’s strength and stamina levels were at par before being stricken by the virus, if not better.
“Hopefully, ‘yung naipundar namin ni Alain in his strength and conditioning for this event will be more than enough,” added the coach in the maiden outing of his ward, with the backing of the Philippine Sports Commission
Proof that Ganapin was back in competitive shape was last July when he bagged a bronze in the Australian Open, an Olympic ranking qualifying competition.
Hence, he will be killing two birds with one stone in achieving a podium finish in his debut here.
“Kapag mag-podium finish si Alain, tataas din po ‘yung world ranking niya,” explained Bautista, who revealed that his ward is currently ranked No. 24 in the world ratings. “He has a bigger chance of making it to Paris if he is within the top 20 in the world because this event has more qualifying points.”
“‘Yung maka-compete sa Paralympic Games ang aming ultimate goal ni coach. Nais ko na matapos ng event ng maayos at makauwi ng medalya,” said the athlete with determination in his voice.
The country has never had a taekwondo jin competing in the Paralympic Games, and should everything go according to plan, Ganapin is keen on being the first one by going all-out for golden glory at the 4th Hangzhou Asian Para Games here.