THE Philippine National Anthem proudly reverberated in a world championship arena twice for athletes from 77 other countries to hear, thanks to sanda fighters Jessie Aligaga and Dembert Arcita. On the final day of the 11th Wushu World Championships inside the packed Ankara Arena in Turkey, the two shortest and lightest Filipino fighters struck gold in nearly identical fashion to affirm the country’s stature as a force to be reckoned with in this demanding sport.
Not even five feet in height, Aligaga, of Molo, Iloilo, humbled Armenian Davit Grigoryan with solid punches and masterful wrestling skills to win in two rounds in the 48-kg class, while fellow Ilonggo Arcita, just a shade taller and heavier at 52 kg, was stretched to a third round on dubious second-round scoring against Tu Hong Hoang of Vietnam.
Arcita, however, erased all doubts with a cracking right straight that floored the Vietnamese for good early in round three.
The two credited the moral support of a group of 16 teammates, six of them also silver and bronze medallists, and Chinese coach Tong Quing Hai, who struggled to have the Filipino voice heard with chants of “Para sa bayan, laban.”
“Ibinigay naming lahat at lalo akong lumakas ng marinig ko ang cheering ng mga teammates ko. Talagang para sa bayan ang lahat ng ito,” said Arcita, an enlisted man of the Philippine Navy, who saluted the flag while the “Lupang Hinirang” was played.
“Nagbunga ang hirap namin sa training,” thankfully commented Aligaga though he bewailed that he could not join the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games this November because Indonesia organizers dropped his weight class from the roster of events.
Veterans Marianne Mariano and Mary Jane Estimar contributed silvers to the cause, yielding to China aces Qui Tiao and Liu Lingling in the 52-kg and 56-kg divisions final after the only other female member of sanda, Rhea Mae Rifani, had already won bronze in the 48-kg class on Thursday.
The nine-member sanda squad also produced two bronze medals courtesy of Mark Eddiva (65 kg) and Benjie Rivera (56 kg), while Francisco Solis (60 kg) reached the quarterfinal round and Edward Folayang bowed out after one win.
The production in the 11-weight class contest placed the Filipinos behind overwhelming favorite China and power-packed Iran for a combat event of worldwide distinction that has yet to be formally included in the calendar of the summer Olympics.
In taolu, the female trio of Natasha Enriquez, Kathleen Sabalburo and Kariza Chan placed fifth among 10, while in the men’s contest, John Keithley Chan, Eleazar Jacob and Engelbert Addongan were sixth out of 15 in the dulian event.
The only medal producer in the nine-member team of taolu was tai chi expert Daniel Parantac, who clinched bronze.
It was a sizable haul for a small team in this edition of the world championships that was attended by more than 600 athletes, who vied for only 40 gold medals in a period of five days.
What were alarming amid the victories of the Filipino sanda team were the injuries sustained by Rifani, Mariano and Estimar.
Both Mariano and Rifani, who will immediately return to training for the SEA Games in Indonesia, hurt their knee area and would require MRI examinations to determine the extent of the injury, while Estimar experienced recurring pain in her nose.
“Sana ho pagbalik namin matingnan kaagad kasi gusto naming top shape pa rin kami pagdating ng SEA Games. Medyo mahal po ang MRI kaya sana matulungan kami,” Mariano appealed.
The sanda and taolu teams return home on Sunday at about 4 p.m.
