Figueroa strikes gold for RP in Asian Martial Arts Games

Unheralded jin Jeffrey Figueroa turned out to be the Philippines' best-kept secret as he plucked the Filipinos’ first gold medal in the 1st Asian Martial Arts Games late Tuesday at the Indoor Stadium Huamark here. The 23-year-old Figueroa crushed Rezai Hasan of Afghanistan, 10-7, in the finals of the men’s bantamweight category to propel the Filipino jins’ to their first Asian gold medal since Ali Atienza won a continental title in the ‘90s. Marlon Avenido and Karla Jane Alava were also impressive as they won a silver and a bronze medal, respectively to put Team Philippines in the ninth spot of this 41-nation tourney with a total haul of one gold, two silver and two bronze medals. Avenido bowed to Gyu Jin Lee of Korea, 2-5, to yield the gold in the men’s welterweight category while Alava lost to Iwen Kuan of Taipei, 0-1, to settle for the bronze in the women’s bantamweight play. Camille Manalo wrapped up Team Philippines’ colorful campaign in taekwondo with a sorry 0-7 loss to a taller, stronger Hua Zhang of China in the quarterfinals of the women’s lightweight category. Earlier, the first taekwondo jins to see action - John Paul Lizardo (men’s finweight), Alex Briones (men’s heavyweight) and Crizobelle Vargas (women’s finweight) - all bombed out right on their first matches. But Figueroa’s golden finish was enough to offset their sluggish performance. After frustrating Muaadh Najiahmed of Yemen, 7-3, in the quarterfinals, Figueroa survived hometown bet and 2007 Southeast Asian Games gold medalist Nattapong Tewawetchapong, 3-2, to book a championship showdown with the shadowy Afghan jin. Ticket to the RP team “It was my first time to face him, we were clueless on what strategy to use," said Figueroa, a long-time member of the RP training pool who is expected to pull a surprise in the 2009 SEA Games in Laos. "He was so aggressive. I had a hard time scoring and defending his attacks." “I hope this victory would give me a slot in the National Team. It has always been my motivation. I really wanted to win, hoping that a gold medal here would be my ticket to the (national) team." With the jins flying home Thursday, wushu artists Mary Jane Estimar, Mariane Mariano and Dambert Arcita would be left to banner the Filipinos’ campaign. Olympic medalists Estimar and Mariano plunged into action late Wednesday bidding to capture two additional gold medals for the country. - GMANews.TV