LAST AUGUST, the 2018 Asian Games held in Jakarta, Indonesia pitted the Philippines’ contenders against the continent’s best, propelling them to the international stage in search of pride and glory. From this league of apex athletes, three Ateneans answered the call.
For taekwondo, Queen Eagle Pauline Lopez and Ateneo mainstay Aaron Agojo took to the mats. On the piste, or the fencing mats, it was rising star Maxine Esteban. While some merely aspire to suit up for the Blue and White, these three powerhouses lived the dream by representing the flags of both school and country.
On the mats
Of the three athletes, Lopez took the dream furthest, bagging the bronze medal in the -57kg category in women’s taekwondo. En route to the semifinals, Lopez demolished everything in her path. After clearing Macau’s Xiao Feng, 8-0, the reigning University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 80 featherweight gold medalist completely overwhelmed Gyani Chunara from Nepal, 20-0.
Upon reaching the semifinals match, the lady jin had to take on Chinese national Zongshi Luo, who was ranked second in Asia. Lopez was trailing by only two points when the Chinese jin used her 1.82-meter height to her advantage and pulled away in the last frame.
Pressured to close the deficit, Lopez needed a high-risk kick to catch up, but fate favored the Chinese national as her turning kick vaulted her into Luo’s lengthy reach. “It’s the minor mistakes and risks I took to get higher points,” said Lopez. “In the process, I lost some points while she gained.”
Nonetheless, Lopez walked away having accomplished an exhilarating feat: notching a bronze medal and making her mark in history as one of 18 Filipino medalists in the 2018 Asian Games.
Also bringing some Ateneo pride to Indonesia was Agojo, one of the men’s team’s most prominent figures in recent UAAP history. Returning to the team after a one-year absence, the UAAP Season 79 featherweight gold medalist brought his strength to the Asian Games before hitting the UAAP for the last time this November.
After defeating Qatar’s Ahmed Dghbas 41-28, Agojo moved on to the round of 16 in the -63kg category, where he would face Iranian Mirhashem Hosseini, the current 12th best player in the world.
It was a tough match for Agojo as he came out with a 2-24 loss against the eventual gold medalist in the tourney. “My match against Hosseini was a learning opportunity for me,” said the blue jin. “I learned a lot and realized that there are still a lot of areas I need to improve.”
On the piste
Meanwhile, the 17-year-old rookie Esteban breezed through her poules in the 2018 Asian Games with a solid 3-2 record, only falling to former Olympian Huo Xing Xin from China and Japan’s Azuma Sera who is ranked 35th in the International Fencing Federation (FIE) world ranking.
Facing Macau’s Ho Peng in the tableau of 32, Esteban did not encounter much difficulty, downing the Macanese fencer, 15-9, to advance to the tableau of 16. Pitted against Azuma, Esteban met her match as she bowed out of the tournament, 15-10.
While she missed out on the medal rounds, Esteban held her head high after giving the continent’s best a run for their money. “It’s a good experience. It’s also very, very hard because they’re mostly Olympians already. But we fought our hardest. We gave them a hard time,” she said.
Tokyo 2020
Following the Asiad’s conclusion, Lopez and Esteban were quick to resume preparations for the grandest sporting spectacle in the world: the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
After racing to the Taekwondo Grand Prix in Taipei last September, Lopez will serve as an ambassador at the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina. These events raise the curtain for the UAAP where the lady jins will take a shot at the gold after their second place finish in Season 80. Despite the several medals around her neck, Lopez admits all these tournaments—including the Asian Games—are hurdles before reaching the finish line in Tokyo 2020.
“The campaign for that starts right now. After losing my chance in the 2016 Rio Olympics, Tokyo has always been the goal,” affirmed Lopez. “This [the 2018 Asian Games] was just a stepping stone to my dream.”
Sharing this dream is Esteban, whose had her eyes on the Olympics since she was a child. A 2017 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games bronze medalist and 2016 Thailand Cadets World Champion, the rookie will now be looking to join the numerous tournaments organized by the FIE to collect points needed for qualification to Tokyo 2020.
To gain exposure from international competition, the fencing phenom plans to start training in France next year. After recruiting a new coach in Floriano Mossimo, Esteban will be training and competing in a tougher European circuit to make her case for a priceless Olympic berth.
Joining iconic female athletes
Lopez and Esteban join an elite company of Filipino women rising fast in the international arena, including weightlifting gold medallist Hidilyn Diaz and skateboarding gold medallist Margielyn Didal. Aside from their athletic laurels, these players are evolving into amazons playing a pivotal role in empowering women.
Esteban, for one, believes that the recent success of women in sports is a welcome change that can inspire and encourage budding Filipina athletes. She cites Lopez as one of her inspirations, as she is able to balance school and her sport well.“I was able to talk to Pauline [Lopez] and Hidilyn Diaz, and they’re really down to earth. It was very motivating.”
Despite the 50-50 gender ratio of the delegation, 12/18 of the Philippine medal haul came from women—a monumental breakthrough for Pinay athletes.
“It’s definitely empowering that we women have this platform to showcase [our] strength. We have this confidence,” said Lopez. “And all the more, it motivates and showcases to the young girls that anything is possible if you put your mind, heart, and soul in what you do.”
These athletes have brought pride to the Philippines—putting up fierce performances and inspiring those watching them to strive for glory. With UAAP Season 81 underway, Lopez, Esteban, and Agojo are returning from the country’s call of duty with their school’s colors next on their minds, aiming to cross another item off their checklist to add to an already glowing resume.
