Cebuano kickboxer stamps class in Asian tilt

CEBU, Philippines -  Cebuano kickboxer Joel Zaspa trains his sights on winning an Olympic gold medal after his successful campaign in the Asian Beach Games last month in Phuket, Thailand.

Zaspa, who is also a mixed martial artist, grabbed bronze medal under the middleweight division in the tough Muay Thai competition of the ABG that drew entries from 46 countries across the Asian continent.

Interestingly, Zaspa is only a last minute pickup of the Philippine team, largely due to his impressive showing in the ‘Bakbakan sa Sugbu’ fightcard, a weekly grassroots tournament organized by Yaw-Yan ArDigma Cebu Martial Arts, Inc. in association with the Cebu City Sports Commission.

“Actually less than one month lang siya (Zaspa) nakapaghanda dahil huli na namin siyang nadiskobre doon sa palaro ni Master Ekin (Caniga) na 'Bakbakan sa Sugbu' nung November,” said Muay Thai national coach Edzel Ngina. “Pero kahit ganun, nakita talaga namin ang tapang at determinasyon ng bata na manalo at doon ako bumilib sa mga Cebuano.”

Ngina said the International Federation of Muay Thai Amateur has given them two slots for the Olympics and Zaspa may be the one to represent the country in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Aside from Zaspa, the other fighters who delivered medals during the ABG were Philip Delarmino with silver in the bantamweight and Alvin Berto and Manuel de los Reyes with bronze in the lightweight and flyweight categories, respectively.

For his part, CCSC chairman Edward Hayco hopes that Zaspa’s success will serve as inspiration for the young aspiring athletes to someday give honor to the country.

“We have dedicated the Cebu City Sports Institute to focus on events like boxing, weightlifting, Muay Thai and MMA, which raised many eyebrows, but we believe in these sports and the training for our young athletes,” said Hayco.

Meanwhile, Ken 'Tonken' Caniga, another product of the CSCC grassroots development program, will try to win gold in Muay Thai event of Batang Pinoy National Finals next week in Bacolod City.

A successful campaign will give Caniga a slot in the Phl Youth squad that will compete in the World Youth Championships slated August next year in Thailand.  (FREEMAN)