MAG-INGAT SA BAN SUBSTANCE, PHL JINS TARGET ANG GOLD MEDAL SA 30TH SEAG
HAHAKOT ang Philippine taekwondo team ng gold medals sa darating na 30th Southeast Asian Games sa Nobyembre sa Manila. Tinitiyak ito ni Barcelona Olympics bronze medalist Stephen Fernandez, “Our taekwondo team will definitely surpass our achievements in the last SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur two years ago,” aniya sa 11th Tabloids Organization in Philippine Sports (TOPS) “Usapang Sports” sa National Press Club sa Intramuros kahapon.“As our good friend and 2019 SEAG chef de mission Monsour (Del Rosario) told you when he guested here to weeks ago, our taekwondo association is preparing very hard for the SEA Games. “As host country in the SEA Games, ayaw naman natin na mapahiya tayo dito sa taekwondo community natin,” dagdag ni Fernandez, na dalawang beses kinatawan ang bansa sa Olympics noong 1988 Seoul at 1992 Barcelona nang masungkit ang bronze.
Hindi man eksaktong nabanggit kung ilang medalya, kumpiyansa si Fernandez na ang pinakapetmalu na taekwondo jins ng ‘Pinas ay magwawagi. “We have Pauline Lopez, one of our top bets in the female category. Samuel Morrison is also there in the men’s division. And we have a formidable poomsae team made up JR Reyes and the Mella brothers, Dustin Jacob and Raphael Enrico.”
Dalawang gold, 3 silver at 4 bronze sa huling SEAG Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia ang nasungkit ng ‘Pinas noong 2017. Mula ang gold kina Morrison sa men’s kyorugi lightweight division at team Reyes Mella brothers sa men’s poomsae event.
Sang-ayon din si Fernandez, sa proyekto ng Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) at ng Philippine National Anti-Doping Organization (PHINADO) sa pagsusuring gagawin sa mga SEAG athletes.“We really have to educate our athletes about all these anti-doping measures, at si Dr. Raul Canlas ang magsusuperbisa hinggil dito. In 2005 SEAG, one of our gold medalists was found to have taken a slimming tea. But at that time, talagang hindi niya alam. Now kailangan talaga ng vigilance. Ngayon, lagi nating sinasabi sa ating mga atleta, before any medication is taken, kailangan talaga nila ipaalam muna. Kahit ‘yung mga spray. We have to check with Dr. Canlas kung kasama ito sa mga gamot na ipinagbabawal ng WADA.”
Isa si Fernandez sa sports personalities na nagsalita sa weekly session ng PSC at ng National Press Club na tampok din sa Facebook via Glitter Livestream, kasama sina MPBL Commissioner Kenneth Duremdes, na nabanggit ang MPBL All-Star Weekend sa Marso 2 sa MOA Arena; at Community Basketball Association (CBA) operations manager Beaujing Acot at Nueva Ecija Defenders team owner Atty. Bong Africa.
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