MANILA, Philippines — World No. 2 Filipino karateka James “OJ” delos Santos continued his ascent to the top after he copped his 12th gold medal in the Venice Cup 2020 online tournament Tuesday.
Delos Santos, 30, topped Slovenian Nejc Sternisa, 25.2-23.7, and earned some more ranking points that should push him closer to World No. 1 Eduardo Garcia of Portugal.
“I’m not far from the No. 1 spot, just a little more and we’re almost there,” said Delos Santos.
Garcia also competed in the same tourney but fell as early as the first round.
On his way to the finals, Delos Santos hurdled Canada’s Scott Taylor, 23.9-21.8, Luxembourg’s Kevin Petry, 24.9-22.4, and Switzerland’s Matias Moreno Domont, who withdrew due to illness.