MANAMA – It all began as a form of self-defense. Who would have thought Kram Airam Carpio would end up a gold-medal winner at the Asian Youth Games.
The 17-year-old Carpio from Santa Cruz, Laguna put the Philippines on the medal board of the meet’s third edition on Monday when she bagged the gold in the girls’ 51-55 kg of pencak silat at the Exhibition World Bahrain Hall 1.
Carpio swept all of four assignments in her division, capped by a 33-19 win over Qiken Dwi Tata Olifia of Indonesia in the gold medal play.
READ Carpio wins first PH gold at Asian Youth Games
The charming teener admitted taking up the sport through the encouragement of her mother more as a self-defense rather than a sport.
“Mother ko po ang nag-inspire sa akin,” she said. “Siya talaga ang nag-push sa akin into sports since pang self-defense lang noong una, then hanggang sa nag tuluy-tuloy na.
“Babae rin ako so need ko ng self-defense. Yun ang tumatak sa isip ng nanay ko na i-push ako sa self-defense. She wants me to be brave and know that I can fight.”
Her gold medal lifted the spirits of the 200-strong Philippine contingent even before the 12-day showpiece could officially begin.
The opening ceremony is set on Wednesday at the Exhibition World Bahrain.
Carpio admitted having concerns when the pencak silat team left its training camp in Baguio on its way to this country considered the third smallest in the Asian region.
“I was one kilogram over [the weight limit]. So I need to lose weight. Yun ang wino-worry ko during our travel,” she recalled.
And for someone as young and carefree as she is, it was a bit difficult considering her passion for sweets.
“Siyempre cravings, so parang nilalabanan ko rin yung sarili ko. Matakaw ako. I enjoy eating, I’m into sweets. Mga cakes, pastries, donuts,” she said while giggling.
“Kino-control ko yung sarili ko, parang kinakalaban ko 'yung sarili ko na huwag masyado (kumain) since may weight pa ako (hinahabol).”
But Carpio managed to overcome her weighty battle and proceeded to overcome her opponents one by one – Nazninfatemeh Kolasangiani of Iran in the Round of 16, Sakshi of India in the quarterfinals, Kazakhstan’s Alivam Azizova in the semis, and then Olifia in the finals.
In doing so, she now joins taekwondo jin Pauline Lopez and golfer Mia Legaspi as only the third Filipino athlete to win a gold in this quadrennial showcase for 14-17-year olds.
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