Sanshou, muay hope to contribute in RP's medal haul

HANOI – The combat sports of sanshou and muay has also assured the Philippines of another silver and three more bronze medals in the 3rd Asian Indoor Games when competition began late Wednesday night. Rhea May Rifani defeated hometown bet Nguyen Thuy Ngan, for a 2-1 decision in sanshou-wushu’s 52-kg division at the Trinh Hoai Duc Gymnasium. Tied at 1-1 after two rounds, Rifani got the much needed point in the third as the sanshou bet from Benguet pushed Nguyen off the ring. “This is a sweet win for me because she defeated me when we fought in the 2004 Asian Championships," said a crying Rifani. She will face China’s Gong Jinlan in Thursday’s gold medal match. Teammate Jennifer Lagilag, who drew a first round bye in the 48 kilogram division for an automatic bronze, will meet former world champion Nguyen Thi Bich for a seat in the finals. Thi Bich, who defeated Lagilag in the finals of the 2007 World Wushu Championships, scored an impressive 2-0 decision against Sakuntala Devi Pukhrambam of India. Muay artist Zaide Laruan, Jay Harold Gregorio and Maricel Subang also secured bronze medals in their respective events being played at Rach Mieu Gymnasium in Ho Chi Minh City. A bronze medal winner in the last AIG, Laruan pulled of a referee stopped contest after outclassing Lam Man Hou of Macau in the quarterfinals of the 60kg class while Gregorio scored a unanimous decision verdict win Mustafa Al-Saraji of Iraq in the 67kg division. Earlier Subang also scored an RSC against Sarita Devi Nongmaithem of India in the women's 48-51kg class. “We’re very happy with the gold medal in boxing. I believe we can win at least two (more) but I really hope we can win more so we can all go home very happy," said Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) secretary general Steve Hontiveros. “It’s a great win and a good motivation for our other athletes competing as they go for gold medals in their respective events," said Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Harry Angping, who helped fund the delegation of boxing, muay, bowling and chess. – GMANews.TV