ni Gerard Arce / VA - @Sports | September 07, 2021
Nagwagi ng gold medal ang Filipino Japanese karateka na si Junna Tsukii sa women's kumite -50kg event ng 2021 Karate1 Premier League noong Linggo sa Cairo, Egypt. Ginapi ng 29-anyos na si Tsukii ang hometown bet na si Areeg Rashed, 2-1 , sa finals para sa kanyang ikatlong gold na napanalunan ngayong taon kasunod ng kanyang panalo sa Golden Belt Tournament sa Serbia noong Marso sa Premier League leg sa Lisbon noong Mayo. Naunang tinalo ni Tsukii sina Aleksandra Grujic ng Austria, Yorgelis Salazar ng Venezuela at isa pang Egyptian na si Reem Ahmed Salama upang umabot ng finals.Sa ngayon, ang 2019 Southeast Asian Games gold medalist na si Tsukii ay nasa seventh spot sa pinakahuling World Karate Federation rankings sa kanyang weight class.
Ibinuhos ni 2019 SEAG karate champion Junaa Tsukii ang kagustuhang makabawi matapos ang pagkabigo sa 2021 World Olympic Qualification Tournament.
Nakakuha siya ng puntos na ‘Yuko’ para magtapos ang laban sa 2-1 iskor. Sinubukan pa itong iapela ng kampo ng Egyptian foe sa Video Assistant Referee (VAR). “Expected her to win as she is very hungry due to the non-qualification in the recent Olympics. Bad breaks during the qualification and she conquered the setback,” wika ni Karate Pilipinas Sports Federation Inc. (KPSFI) President Richard Lim sa panayam ng Bulgar Sports sa online messaging.
Tiwala si Lim na magiging tuloy-tuloy ang momentum na hawak ng No.7th World ranked sa women’s 50kgs division na uupak pa ito ng husto sa 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games sa Setyembre sa China. “She is back really strong and focused on getting the Gold in the coming Asian Games,” saad ni Lim.
“How many times you fall, get up and keep going. I challenged the best state of the past, but I couldn't get to the Olympics, and I was so humiliating that all my effort was pointless, and I was retiring,” sambit ni Tsukii sa kanyang Facebook post. “But after all, I'm still practicing hard. I'm so happy that everyone needs it and I need everyone too. I can challenge with everyone, so I'm going to stand up again and again! I love this road where everyone is here!”