Novino claims sambo silver

MANILA, Philippines — Sophia Nicole Novino fought a male and beat him for the gold medal in a Sambo tournament last month in Singapore.

But against World Juniors silver medalist Kazakh Karakat Rakhybay in the finals of the 11th Asia-Oceania Championships, the 17-year-old Filipina couldn’t hold her ground and lost via submission at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium yesterday.

The University of the East judo standout settled for the silver that weighed like gold.

“It felt like I achieved a lot since I didn’t expect a lot here,” said Novino, who bested Kyrgyzstan’s Erkeaiym Samatova and Vietnamese Nguyen Thi Tien in the earlier rounds.