SAKHIR, Bahrain – Meggie Ochoa is the latest former bemedalled national athlete who’s continuing onto the next episode.
The two-time world champion and Asian Games gold medalist is now part of the Philippine jiu-jitsu coaching team tasked to handle the youth development program that formed part of the contingent which competed here in the 3rd Asian Youth Games.
She joined the likes of fellow world champion Josie Gabuco and Olympian Kirstie Elaine Alora in branching out into coaching, as the two were also on the sidelines of the boxing and taekwondo competitions, respectively, of this 45-nation meet that came to a close on Friday.
READ: Call her coach Josie as former world champ treks new career path
Ochoa, 35 and a jiu-jitsu black belter, announced her retirement from the sport last year, a year since winning the gold in the women’s 48kg of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
Now, she gets the chance to give back to the sport where she became a legend in her own right.
Coach Meggie makes it happen
And coaching? She is starting to learn the basics of teaching and guiding young athletes the way she did in the meet where the coaching staff that also included Chris Gallego had to deal with an 18-man jiu-jitsu unit.
“Mas mahirap maging coach para sa akin kasi ang dami mong iniisip, tsaka yung emotions mo, kailangan mo siyang i-manage kasi you have to be on top of things and kailangan ikaw din yung mas composed para yung mga atleta, hindi rin sila mara-rattle,” said the business management graduate of Ateneo.
Jiu-jitsu produced one of the country’s seven golds through 17-year-old Fil-Am Isabella Josie Butler in the girls’ 63kg, while a bronze was collected in the girls’ 57kg.
Ochoa, who won golds in the JJIF World Jiu-Jitsu Championships in 2018 (Sweden) and 2022 (United Arab Emirates) at 49kg and 48kg, respectively, said the group is now seeing the vision of managing and preparing the youth and junior jiu-jitsu bets transition to the senior and elite levels.
“Yung motivation ko, ma-build up yung mga youth athletes para mayroong mas marami pa na papalit sa amin sa adult team in the future, na ma-level up sila to the point na yung mga na-deliver namin na medals in the past, ma-outnumber nila,” added Ochoa, also a gold winner in the Asian Jiu-Jitsu Championship and two-time gold medalist in the Southeast Asian Games.
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