Having built the Ateneo Judo Program, from a mere five member club with no coach, to a formidable force in the UAAP, long-time coach and program pioneer, Ali Sulit, shares his thoughts with The GUIDON on the championship three-peat.

The GUIDON: How does it feel to once again be the undisputed champs for the third year running? Any different?

Coach Ali: Definitely it feels great. It’s an affirmation of the highest level—about our training program, our approach, our very culture in the team. Winning is a state of mind and we aimed to train the team to have that winning mindset ever since. So, we just allowed that and the training to come into play last weekend.

G: What do you feel was the most crucial moment(s) of the tournament?

A: I told my guys that all the hardships, the challenges and even the drama that they’ve experienced in training during the last eight months was to prepare them for the UAAP. I told them that they will experience all those things again, but all in two days. And true enough, a lot of obstacles and drama happened. However, that’s one of the things we trained ourselves to do—to keep focused no matter what, to keep fighting no matter what. Just because a major player of the team loses, it doesn’t mean that the rest of the team will lose morale. On the contrary, our team just gets stronger in their resolve amidst adversity. If their opponents scored on them, they just keep fighting. If they’re super down on points and there’s only a few seconds to go, they’ll fight even harder. And it did show in some of our matches. No one gives up in this team. No one.

In day 1, JR, Matt and Andro secured the gold, silver and bronze giving us the needed points to be in contention. Day 2 picked up when Jhonel, Kevin, Iel and Anjo kept winning until their semi-final matches. After that, we were all confident that our guys can take them all on.

I would also like to think that it boosted the morale of the teams to see all their alumni present to support them. Generations of Judo team line-ups all the way back from 1991 came and supported the team. It was an awesome sight.

G: What would you say was most important for the Judokas in taking home the championship? (For example: cardio, perseverance, positive mindset, etc)

A: I would have to sum it up with the following words: desire, commitment, fighting sprit, courage and focus.

The guys never let up. Even when it seemed that the match wasn’t going in their favor; all of them fought like there was no tomorrow. I was personally in awe to see such fire, such courage from our guys and girls.

G: As head coach, how do you personally feel about what the team has done and accomplished throughout the year?

A: I mentioned before that this was the hardest, most grueling AND most well-rounded training program we’ve ever implemented. It surely paid off. I am very proud of each and every one in the team, the ones in the line-up and those who are part of the training team. The championship is the result of EVERYONE’s hard work and contribution in this year’s efforts. It is my honor and privilege to be coaching these young men and women.

I am most pleased and grateful about my coaching staff. It was our synergy that allowed us to be most effective for all our teams. Each of us had a role and an aspect of the training we had to handle and the results show that we did it well. I am proud of all my coaches.

G: What are the plans now for you and the Judokas? More training?

The plan? We go back on the mats on Monday. Judo is our life. Why would we stop living?

G: Once again thank you so much coach Ali for your cooperation and congratulations once more for the hard earned and well deserved three-peat.