Rookie Bejar bows to Indonesian, settles for silver

KUALA LUMPUR – John Paul Bejar fought his way to a silver medal finish in his first international stint in the below 55kg category of the SEA Games karate kumite competition at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center here yesterday.

The 22-year-old Cainta native even went a minute away from winning the gold but lost out to eventual winner Iwan Bidu Sirait of Indonesia, who rallied with successive hits at the close of the fight.

From a 4-4 count, Sirait blitzed to a 10-4 triumph, and the young Filipino fighter settled for the silver.

“This will inspire me to train and try to improve my craft,” said Bejar, who temporarily shelved his hotel and restaurant management studies at FEU for this SEA Games campaign.

Mae Soriano pocketed the bronze in women’s below 55kg. kumite, and Team Phl raised its haul to three silvers and three bronzes after two days of karate competitions.

Three bronzes went away as John Michael Vincent Badil, Miyuki Tacay and Sharief Afif fell to superior opponent one after the other.

Those defeats came after the Philippines won a protest lodged on the result of Bejar’s semifinal match with local rival Prem Kumar Al Selvam.

“Mukhang napag-initan tayo (They seemed to have ganged up on us),” said Philippine karatedo official Raymund Lee Reyes, admitting though that Bejar lost to a superior rival in the gold-medal match.

Selvam had been declared winner of his match with Bejar, but organizers later reversed the outcome of the game upon review of the match video. It’s unprecedented in the SEAG karatedo history.

“We’re dissuaded not to proceed with the protest. But we said we’re doing our job,” said Reyes.

In the finale, Bejar came out and seized the early initiative, at 2-0 then 3-1, to wild cheers by the Philippine crowd.

“Sayang, pinagtatamaan tayo nung huli (It’s a pity we got hit a lot in the end),” said coach Rommel Raymundo.

They’re still hopeful of winning a gold in the team competition today.

“Eighty percent of our fighters have won medals. Laban tayo dyan (in the team competition),” said Raymundo.

On Tuesday, Jason Caalay and Rexor Tacay also delivered silvers while OJ delos Santos and Junna Tsukii snared bronzes.