NAGOYA – Amaya Paz Cojuangco wanted gold. She got silver. For Philippine archery, it weighed like gold.
At 40, with a bad shoulder, a No. 28 qualifying rank and a decade of stops and starts behind her, Cojuangco did something no Filipino archer had ever done Thursday – she shot her way into an Asian Games gold-medal match.
She didn’t win it. Indonesia’s Nurisa Dian Ashrifah did, 139-137, in a final that went to the last arrow at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square.
But the silver is historic anyway. It’s the best finish ever for the Philippines in Asian Games archery, topping Paul Marton dela Cruz’s bronze from Incheon in 2014.
“I super wanted the gold. I’m sad natalo, but grateful with the silver,” Cojuangco said. “Final ayaw pumasok. I can only do my best.”
She was on target in beating China’s Wei Fangyao and Vietnam’s Le Pham Ngoc Anh in the early rounds.
Then it got hard.
Cojuangco needed three perfect 30s to defeat second-seed Bita Asheghzadeh Oskouei of Iran, 146-135, in the quarterfinals.
Then came the massive, nerve-wracking semifinal upset over Park Jungyoon, 142-141, to book her finals berth.
It’s a giant upset considering Park is from an archery team that has won 32 of 76 golds contested in the Olympics and 46 of 73 golds staked in the Asian Games. Beating a Korean in a big spot just doesn’t happen much.
Cojuangco did it by the slimmest of margins – a finish that had her foreign coaches hugging her behind the line and the small Filipino contingent in the stands bewildered.
That set up the final. Tied at 110-all going into the last end, Ashrifah closed with back-to-back 10s for a 29 while Cojuangco shot three 9s for a 27.
“I’m very lucky and I thank the Lord. Parang destiny,” Cojuangco said. “I didn’t qualify well, ranked 28. I came from behind and every match was a fight.”
She narrowly missed gold. She made history anyway.