‘Calam-bubble’ ready for Olympic hopefuls

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s Olympic hopefuls from taekwondo, karate and boxing will converge at the Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba, Laguna where they would train in a bubble set up for the next three months beginning on Saturday.

Boxer Nesthy Petecio, gold medalist in the 2019 World Championships, will be flying to Manila from Davao anytime soon to join more or less 30 athletes and coaches preparing in the “Calam-bubble.”

“We were told the tentative date is either January 9 or 10 and I’m ready to go. I’m just waiting for my plane ticket,” said Petecio, who is hoping to qualify to the Tokyo Olympics in July and join fellow boxers Eumir Marcial and Irish Magno as well as gymnast Caloy Yulo and pole-vaulter EJ Obiena.

Apart from Petecio, Carlo Paalam, Ian Clark Bautista and Riza Pasuit are among the boxers going to Calamba.

In taekwondo, 2016 Rio Olympics veteran Elaine Alora, Kurt Barbosa, Arven Alcantara, Butch Morrison and Pauline Lopez are in the list as they shoot for the maximum of four Olympic slots allowed per country.

Philippine Taekwondo Association secretary-general Rocky Samson said three sparring partners, and coaches Caloy Padilla, Luis de Mesa and Al Christian dela Cruz would accompany the five in Calamba.

“Hopefully, by the third week of March, we’ll be ready for the Olympic qualifying in Amman, Jordan,” said Samson.

Jamie Lim, Sharief Afif, Alwyn Batican and Ivan Agustin, for their part, will represent karate, according to Karate Pilipinas president Richard Lim.

Junna Tsukii will follow soon from Japan along with Joan Orbon, who will be coming from Orlando, Florida in the United States.

Lim said this same group of karatekas would then fly to Turkey possibly next month or March to train and face world-class competition.

Philippine Sports Commission board member Ramon Fernandez said a meeting is scheduled today to finalize the details about the bubble, which will cost the government around P15 million for a three-month period.