PENCAK Silat rising star Kram Airam Carpio won the first gold medal for the Philippines at the 3rd Asian Youth Games in Manama, Bahrain.
A silver medalist at the Asian Championships, Carpio proved to be too much for her youth counterparts as she swept all her assignments in the event which will officially open on Wednesday.
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The soft-spoken pride of Laguna dismantled Qiken Dwi Tata Olifia of Indonesia, 33-19, in the gold medal round.
Carpio’s victory was a statement in itself considering that Pencak Silat is a sport that originated from her rival’s country.
En route to the top of the podium, Carpio beat Nazaninfatemeh Kolasan of Iran, 36-22 in her opening match before dominating Sakshi Thakur of India, 83-17, in her twin assignments on Sunday.
In the semis, she also made short work of Kazakhstan’s Aliyam Azizova, 46-27, to secure the final berth.
Carpio’s gold will put the Philippines among the leaders when the event is formally opened.
Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino, who was at sidelines to witness Carpio’s exploits, is optimistic that the country’s good start at the Asian Youth Games will rally more Filipinos to support our youth athletes.
“These athletes are the future of Philippine sports. Sila ang ilalaban natin, hopefully, sa Olympics at iba pang major international tournaments, two, three, four years from now,” said Tolentino.
“Suportahan po natin ang mga atletang Pilipino lalo na ngayon, patuloy tayong nagpapanalo. Three gold medals na tayo sa Olympcis, dati nangangarap lang tayo. Then ang daming events ang dino-dominate na rin natin. Tuloy ang programa natin para sa mga atleta,” added the former Tagaytay City mayor.
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