THE ATENEO Blue Eagles clinched gold and bronze medals at the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 85 Poomsae Tournament earlier today at the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City. The Blue and White were declared the second runners-up overall.
These impressive feats signal the end of Ateneo’s five-year medal drought. The team last earned a silver medal in Season 76 in the Individual Male event.
Individual Female Category
Team Captain Elaine Borres opened Ateneo’s UAAP Poomsae campaign with an overall average semifinals score of 7.755 upon registering a 7.77 for her Taegeuk 6 performance and a 7.74 for Taegeuk 7. The sophomore jin placed fifth in this round but was unsuccessful in advancing to the finals.
[Individual Female]
— Juno Reyes (@Juno_TheGUIDON) December 13, 2022
Team Captain Elaine Borres kicks off the Blue Eagles’ poomsae campaign with a 7.77-point Taegeuk 6 run. #UAAPTaekwondo@TheGUIDONSports pic.twitter.com/QwyjhXJN9Z
Individual Male Category
Team Captain Joaquin Tuzon recorded an overall score of 8.195 in the Individual Male Finals to clinch the first gold medal for the Blue and White. The 2022 Asian Taekwondo Championships Silver Medalist achieved his dream to snatch a gold medal in the collegiate tournament over National University’s Ceanne Rosquillo (8.170) and De La Salle University’s (DLSU) Patrick Perez (8.115).
[Individual Male Finals]
— Juno Reyes (@Juno_TheGUIDON) December 13, 2022
GOLD! Tuzon notches a first-place finish after capping off his Taegeuk 6 performance with an 8.16 and snagging an overall score of 8.195. This marks the Blue Eagles’ first podium finish since Season 76!#UAAPTaekwondo#UAAPPoomsae@TheGUIDONSports pic.twitter.com/ora5O1AKeg
Mixed Pair
Building on their commendable performances, the dynamic duo of Tuzon and Borres notched a bronze medal with an overall final score of 7.895. Recording an 8.03 for the Shipjin form and a 7.76 for the Keumgang form, the duo of Tuzon and Borres finished third, following University of Santo Tomas’ Vincent Rodriguez and Chelsea Tacay (8.230), and DLSU’s Perez and Mikee Regala (8.215).
[Mixed Pair Finals]
— Juno Reyes (@Juno_TheGUIDON) December 13, 2022
An 8.03 for Shipjin and a 7.76 for Keumgang allow Borres and Tuzon to win bronze with an overall average score of 7.895!#UAAPTaekwondo#UAAPPoomsae @TheGUIDONSports pic.twitter.com/EXtasOSkTD
Team Female Category
Jared Hilario, Eirenne Lumasang, and Martina Ventura took to the mats, representing the Blue and White in the Team Female division. The Atenean trio earned a score of 7.67 in the Koryo form and a 7.63 in the Pyongwon form, garnering an overall average semifinals score of 7.650.
Sitting in sixth place in the semifinals, the jins fell just short of advancing to the final round.
[Team Female Semifinals]
— Juno Reyes (@Juno_TheGUIDON) December 13, 2022
The trio of Jared Hilario, Eirenne Lumasang, and Martina Ventura earn a 7.67 and a 7.63 in their Koryo and Pyongwon performances, respectively. The team will not be advancing to the final round. #UAAPTaekwondo#UAAPPoomsae@TheGUIDONSports pic.twitter.com/bujdjhzHw6
Ateneo did not send out any representatives for the Team Male event.
The Blue Eagles steadily climbed up the ranks in the past two UAAP seasons under Head Coach Ardee Landrito’s tutelage. Despite already improving to a podium finish after ranking fourth in four divisions in Season 84, Landrito believes the Blue and White can attain even more accolades.
“They are already very skillful and they are willing to improve a lot. I would say na short time pa rin ‘yung preparation because I think there’s still a lot of room for improvement. Pero ngayong season, alam kong mas kaya pang mag-push,” Landrito expressed.
(I would say that it was a short preparation time because I think there’s still a lot of room for improvement. But this season, I know that they can still push.)
“Hopefully rin magkaroon kami ng go signal to form a men’s team para dagdag pa sa score at maging stable ‘yung team. I just want na kung ano ‘yung nasimulan namin ngayon dapat mas mahigitan pa namin,” the coach continued.
(Hopefully we will also get the go signal to form a men’s team so we can increase our score next time and make the team more stable. I just want us to do even better than what we’ve already achieved now.)
As Tuzon reaches one of his dreams, he believes there are still more goals to achieve in the coming seasons. “I feel fulfilled but it doesn’t stop here. I still have three to four more seasons to go, and I will do better for the team. Of course, [the ultimate goal] is to stand at the highest spot on the podium,” the gold medalist said.
The Blue Eagles will continue the UAAP action tomorrow in their Kyorugi matches at the Blue Eagle Gym. Ateneo will be setting foot on the Kyorugi mats again for the first time since Season 82 following the full-contact event’s absence from Season 84.
