Summer children champions

This summer has been an eye-opening experience for parents who are seeng their children reap the rewards of their sacrifice and dedication to their various sports. Not surprisingly, kids have been proving themselves unbeatable especially in martial arts, on both the national and international scale.

Last weekend, the Philippines sent a relatively small contingent to the Goju-Kai Karate-Do championships held in Bangkok, Thailand. The previous edition was held in Hong Kong in November 2007. At the ABAC Suvarnabhumi Campus (Assumption University), children from Australia, Brunei, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Nepal, the Philippines, Singapore and host country Thailand competed in both kata and kumite battles for medals and bragging rights. Japan begged off because of the natural disasters and fear of radiation contamination that recently afflicted their country.

The Philippines, competing exclusively in the kumite events, was represented by athletes from the Association for the Advancement of Karatedo (AAK). The lean delegation was composed of six child athletes, branch chief and former national athlete Richard Anthony Lim and head coach, Raoul Resurreccion. We fielded one athlete per age group where they were qualified. Three of our athletes, facing a hostile crowd and tough competition, won three gold medals. Jose Raphael Habalo topped the boys’ 10-11-year old kumite category. Ronaldene Aletheia Flores copped the gold in the distaff version of the category. Jamie Christine Lim capped the harvest with a gold in the girls’ 14-15-year old kumite class.

“It was a thrilling experience for us parents, and more so the kids,” gushed businessman Jayvee Habalo, whose son was the country’s youngest gold medal winner. “It’s an experience that we will always remember, because it also brought honor to the country.”

The team’s trip was not publicized or trumpeted in the media, but it is something that the families of the kids involved saw as a great growth experience for their young children, and a chance for the families to bond with one another.

On another note, the Quezon City government, whose sports program is under the office of Vice-Mayor Joy Belmonte, will be consolidating its various sports activities to identify talents for long-term development for sports competition, and also to keep them off the streets. The reasoning is that, if the local government merely engaged in the promotion of sports events, there would be no benefit in terms of grassroots development.

“We’re really looking at our grassroots program as a way of harnessing the power of the city’s youth,” says Belmonte. “This is something we would like to leave behind for the benefit of the people of Quezon City.”

The city’s basketball program has been very successful, with its team racking up a string of wins in the ongoing tournament sponsored by Coca-Cola and organized by former national coach Joe Lipa. The players were picked from various clinics the city conducted, many from depressed areas. The team is coached by former youth coach Rene Baena.

Lastly, the Philippine Air Force squad overcame stiff competition from DepEd Rizal to emerge overall champion at last weekend’s Enersel Forte National Youth Arnis Festival at the SM Megamall. Each team won 12 golds, with PAF earning more silvers and bronzes. Teams from as far as Mindoro and Bulacan and Rizal entered the tournament supported by Smart, Stix, Harbour Centre and Chris Sports.