Karate's Tsukii to get P1M reward for World Games gold

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino-Japanese Karateka Junna Tsukii will receive P1 million as incentive from government for recently striking gold in the World Games in Birmingham, United States.

Philippine Sports Commission officer-in-charge Atty. Guillermo Iroy on Thursday confirmed the news saying the reward will come from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

“Yes, she (Tsukii) will receive a P1 million incentive for that gold in the World Games,” said Iroy.

Tsukii was the first Filipino athlete to receive the incentive under the new leadership of President Bong Marcos.

Meanwhile, world pool champion Carlo Biado will have a chance to earn the same incentives after he barged into the quarterfinals of the men’s 9-ball event following an 11-10 win over Wiktor Zielinski of Poland Thursday.

Biado, who copped gold in Wroclaw, Poland five years ago, capped his triumph with an impressive 1-9 combination that arranged a quarterfinal showdown with a fellow world champion Albin Ouschan of Austria, who turned back Aden Carl Joseph of South Africa, 11-8.

Another Filipino world champion, Rubin Amit, will launch her golden campaign as she squares off with German national champion Pia Filler in the women’s 9-ball event today.

Amit was fresh from her double-gold triumph (9-ball and 10-ball) in last May’s Hanoi Southeast Asian Games and should come in with a lot of confidence against Filler.