AICHI, Japan — The Philippines achieved two historic milestones at the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya on Friday, October 23, driven by landmark performances from virtual taekwondo standout Jeus Gabriel Derick Yape and beach volleyball duo Khylem Progella and Sofiah Pagara.
After claiming bronze in the men’s individual poomsae event the previous day, the 22-year-old Yape rebounded with a 2-0 sweep against Vietnam’s Chau Ngoc Tuyet Sang to claim the inaugural mixed individual virtual taekwondo title at Toyohashi Gymnasium.
“Super happy po ako, hindi ko po to inaasahan,” said the BS Sports Management student from University of Santo Tomas. “Talagang nakinig lang at naniwala ako sa mga coaches ko.”
Yape’s triumph placed him alongside Olympic gymnastics champion Carlos Yulo as the country’s double-medalists in the Games. In virtual taekwondo—a motion-tracking format where strikes deplete an opponent’s virtual health bar—Yape landed 500 hits in the opening round and 620 in the second.
The gold marked the Philippine taekwondo program’s first continental title, exceeding previous silver-medal finishes by Tshomlee Go and Toni Rivero in 2006.
“Yan quota na tayo, apat na ang golds natin for now,” said Philippine Taekwondo Association secretary-general Rocky Samson.
Further action in taekwondo saw former world junior champion Tachiana Mangin (-49kg) and Tokyo Olympian Kurt Barbosa (-58kg) advance to their respective gold medal bouts after semifinal victories. Mangin secured a 2-1 win over Japan’s Ruka Okamoto, while Barbosa swept Japan’s Hidetaka Maeda, 2-0.
In beach volleyball, Progella and Pagara delivered the Philippines’ first-ever Asian Games medal in the sport, overcoming China’s Cao Shuting and Dong Jie, 13-21, 23-21, 15-13, at Ryokuchi Beach Court in Hekinan under the guidance of Brazilian coach Joao Kiodai.
In jiu-jitsu, Kaila Napolis earned a bronze medal in the women’s -52kg division after defeating Mongolia’s Tsagaanbileg Altangerel, 2-0, following a repechage run. However, defending Asian Games champion Annie Ramirez suffered an early exit against Thailand’s Nuchanat Singchalad at the Aichi Martial Arts Hall.
Meanwhile, Olympic silver medalist Carlo Paalam captured silver in the men’s 55kg boxing final after a narrow 2-3 split decision loss to Japan’s Rui Yamaguchi, improving on his bronze finish in 2018.
“I’m good, yung referee kasi, ako parating tinitignan. But move on pa rin tayo,” Paalam remarked regarding the outcome.
In team events, the Alas Pilipinas Men’s volleyball squad earned their first tournament victory with a 25-19, 25-15, 23-25, 25-17 win over Uzbekistan in the classification round. The Blu Girls softball team also defeated Hong Kong, 9-3, to set up a bronze medal match against Chinese Taipei.
In golf, Justine Delos Santos posted a third-round 68 to stay eight strokes behind leader Kim Joohyung of South Korea in the men’s individual event, while the Philippine team trails South Korea by 16 strokes heading into the final round.
With these results, the Philippines moved to 16th in the medal standings with four golds, six silvers, and 16 bronzes, surpassing its four-gold, two-silver, 12-bronze finish from the previous Asian Games.