ONE TEAM. Led by Head Coach Alexander Sulit of the Ateneo Judo Association, the Ateneo Judokas’ will for redemption were tested in a grueling two-day tournament that saw them unable to place in the top three. Photo courtesy of Joel Jayme.

RETURNING TO the mats gunning for a podium finish, the Blue and Lady Judokas finished fourth and fifth respectively in the UAAP Judo Tournament held at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium last September 29 to 30. Such a finish was not what the judokas of the Ateneo Judo Association (AJA) had hoped and trained hard for since the end of Season 74.

The Blue Judokas finished fourth behind third seed De La Salle University (DLSU), second seed University of the Philippines (UP) and back-to-back champions University of Santo Tomas (UST). The Lady Judokas were fifth out of a total six teams in the women’s division, as UST once again came out and to win gold. UP finished silver and DLSU settled for bronze.

Blue Judokas

Looking to make a statement on the first day of the competition, the Blue Judokas had expected to secure three gold medals. Ateneo, however, managed to secure just two golds and a single bronze care of black belters Matthew Jao (minus 100 kg), Angelo Gumila (minus 90 kg) and prized rookie Ramon Santiago (plus 73 kg), respectively.

Team Captain Jao shined as he defeated his opponents with an array of impressive moves that included a submission and an ippon, the highest scoring move in Judo.

Veteran and reigning UAAP gold medalist Gumila, meanwhile, paralleled his captain’s performance by doing demolition jobs of his own. Described by his teammates as a “cool and relaxed” player, Gumila scored ippons in most, if not all, of his matches.

Santiago, who was named Rookie of the Year, was expected to at least bring home the silver medal. Unfortunately, he settled for bronze as he lost his semifinal bout, a match that many considered as the upset of the day.

Inspired by the performance of their teammates, meanwhile, the Blue Judokas competing on the second day started out strong. Fueled by their desire to redeem their heartbreaking performance last Season 74, the men’s team sought to advance further in the competition.

Little by little, however, Ateneo began to fall behind the pack as Blue Judoka after Blue Judoka was slowly eliminated. Players Juan Miguel Laurel and Zygphryg Co both fell one match short of bagging bronze medals in their respective divisions. These losses badly affected Ateneo in the race for the top three.

At the end of what looked like a promising day for the Blue Judokas, the team managed to secure only two bronze medals from the Extra Lightweight and Half Lightweight Divisions. Both medals came in as a result of the performances of team veteran Sean Vergel de Dios (minus 60 kg) and sophomore Benedict Clemente (minus 66 kg).

Lady Judokas

It was not only the Blue Judokas who had suffered setbacks during the first day of competition as the Lady Judokas had their fair share of mishaps. Team Captain Samantha Dela Costa (minus 48 kg) and team veteran Maria Moran (minus 52 kg) were heavy favorites coming into this year’s UAAP season.

Dela Costa is the only remaining black belter for the women’s team while Moran hails from a family whose members are some of the most impressive judokas in the country. Both players, however, failed to place higher than third.

Dela Costa uncharacteristically suffered an early loss during the early rounds of the competition, but successfully rebounded from her defeat to finish with a bronze medal in the Women’s Extra Lightweight Division.

Moran, on the other hand, supported the efforts of her captain by securing one of the bronze medals in the Women’s Half Lightweight Division. The team failed to land any more medals during the day as the other members of the team fell short in their respective campaigns.

Looking to make up for a disappointing first day in competition, the Lady Judokas fared somewhat better during the second day. Unfortunately, the efforts of sole medalist Isabela Nepomuceno on the second day was not enough to propel the team to a podium finish. Nepomuceno (plus 78 kg) capped off the outing of the Lady Judokas with a silver medal in the Women’s Heavyweight Division.

Promising future

The team’s unique embrace of the value of teamwork made them stand out in this year’s competition.

“It’s not a sport that you can learn and improve on alone. You always need your partner cause you never really know how another person is going to react to your attacks,” shared team veteran Laurel.

Teammates not only willingly agreed to act as human dummies for players with upcoming matches to practice on at the sidelines, but also looked after one another during matches, even when their greatest defeat came at the expense of the greatest triumph of their teammates.

This was shown best in one of the bronze medal matches in the Women’s Half Lightweight Division (minus 52 kg). After Moran had successfully completed her move on teammate Ariel De Leon to win the bronze medal, she left herself with no time to celebrate and rushed to pick up De Leon who was still on the mat reeling from the effects of her defeat. The two teammates exchanged hugs and eventually walked off the mat to return to the Ateneo gallery side by side and in smiles.

“I congratulated her and I told her I was proud of her,” said De Leon, who is graduating this year.

Despite falling short, the Blue and Lady Judokas will without a doubt come out stronger and continue to show the same amount of tenacity that other teams have come to know them for, win or lose, in the years to come.

For the graduating veterans, however, this season was their last appearance for their beloved judo teams. “I will never be ready to completely say goodbye to the best thing in my college life,” shared De Leon. “Bidding goodbye to Ateneo Judo is like tearing off a huge portion of my life.”

Those who are staying are hopeful for next season. “This year is a learning experience and a stepping stone,” said junior Co. “The way I see it, we didn’t lose. We are just learning to win.”

“If there’s anything I’ve seen in my six years in this team, it’s that, no matter how hard the blow, the AJA will always get back on its feet. This will definitely be a learning experience for the team,” said Jao. “Next year, we will be back.”

With reports from Mateo L. Escueta