Karatekas bag three golds

MLADA BOLESLAV, Czech Republic — Filipino karatekas led by Ian George Jereos bagged three gold medals Sunday to finish fourth overall in the prestigious VII Czech Republic Karate Open championships here.

Jereos whipped top Yugoslavian kata player Radojeie in the men’s finals after hurdling his earlier rivals from Lithuania, Germany, Poland and San Marino.

Cherli Tugday and Nestor Halili produced the two other RP golds in the kumite 60-kilogram and 53-kg events, respectively.

Tugday also captured a silver in the ladies’ kata competition while Southeast Asian Games gold medalist Gretchen Malalad, Brandy Mariano and youthful bet Alvin Merk de Leon won a bronze each.

Tugday beat Czech Republic’s Skopkova Jana while Halili beat another Czech, Kesi Ryu, 9-2, in their respective kumite events.

Earlier in the day, Tugday fell to reigning world junior kata finalist Vasekova Miroslava after hurdling her opponents from Poland, North Ireland and Czechoslovakia.

The Czech Republic emerged top finisher with 17 golds, followed by Slovakia with five golds, Latvia (4 golds), the Philippines, and Germany (2 golds).

"I am happy with our athletes’s showing," said Philippine Karatedo Federation president Eduardo Ponce.

The Filipinos, whose trip was supported by the Philippine Sports Commission and the Philippine Olympic Committee and sponsored by Pilipinas TeleServ Inc., Unilever Phils., and the Cainta and Quezon City governments, will proceed to Sorrento, Italy to compete in the IV Therrynian Open tournament May 24-26.