Smart nat'l poomsae tilt slated

MANILA, Philippines - World poomsae (forms) bronze medalists Camille Alarilla, Rani Ortega and Janice Lagman will display their winning abilities as they compete in the Smart national poomsae taekwondo championships on July 22 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Alarilla, Ortega and Lagman, who bagged their medals in the team competition in the world event, are among the 1,500 participants in the event organized by the Philippine Taekwondo Association and sponsored by Smart Communications Inc., MVP Sports Foundation, PLDT, Milo and Philippine Sports Commission.

The entries will come from various regions including ARMM, CAR, CARAGA and the National Capital Region. They will vie for honors in five events, namely, individual standard, pair and team free style, synchronized poomsae and creative poomsae.

The participants will be classified into children (13 years and below), juniors (14 to 17 years old) and seniors (18 years old and above).

The taekwondo athletes will represent their respective chapters including Powerflex, Ateneo, San Sebastian College, UP, San Beda College, De La Salle Zobel, De La Salle University, More Than Medals, Korean Taekwondo Committee (KTC), Team Baguio, Pangasinan, UTA-Tigers, PNP and AFP, among others.

In poomsae, participants display attack and defense techniques against imaginary opponents. The event is a way of understanding and practicing every aspect of martial art, basic technique, breathing control, balance, coordination and concentration. The mind and body work together in striving for perfection of techniques that are hard to achieve. Taekwondo is meaningless without poomsae.

Competition will start at 9 a.m. Martial art enthusiasts and sports buffs, especially children who are interested in the sport, are invited to watch.