A CLOSE contact sport became an opportunity to get even closer.
With a million ways to find love, Southeast Asian Games silver medalist Arven Alcantara and fitness enthusiast Kristina Lopez have built a new home together, with taekwondo as its heart.
And why not? That's how their relationship happened, after all.
“We wouldn’t have met if it wasn’t for taekwondo. The sport is the foundation of our relationship,” Alcantara told SPIN Life.
Looking back to where it all began five years ago, it was business as usual for Arven, who was in the taekwondo varsity team for the National University at that time.
He was preparing himself for UAAP Season 78 when a teammate from the national team, Kris Uy, introduced Arven to his cousin, Kristina, who played for the De La Salle University.
“That was the first time we met,” the Surigao Del Sur native shared. “But we didn’t start getting to know each other until 2016, we started to notice each other during my strength and conditioning trainings for Asian Championships, she [often visited] and did strength and conditioning with us.”
He continued: “After we started dating, we trained together. [That’s one way] of spending quality time together. That led us into doing road runs, biking, working out, boxing, and traveling abroad together.”
Early in December last year, Arven faced arguably the biggest moment of his taekwondo career when he faced off against Thai jin Lakchai Hauihongthong in the ~68kg competition. While he would eventually fall 24-22, he finished the Southeast Asian Games with a silver medal.
It wasn't the only metal he would gain that month. In that same month, the couple exchanged wedding rings after four years of being partners in both life and sports.
For the two newlyweds, it's still business as usual, even during the pandemic. In their love story in the time of coronavirus, the couple manages to maintain their bond the same way they did when they were still courting: By keeping themselves fit and healthy while practicing together.
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