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METROVANINDEPENDENT.COM
November 2015
SPORTS
Pinay teen eyes berth in
2020 Tokyo Olympics
By Alex Mino
Filipino Canadian Shalene Lee will vie
for honor in the upcoming World Karate
Federation Championships slated this
month in Jakarta which could possibly earn
her a spot to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Instructor Brian James expressed
optimism on his protégée’s chances in
the all-important championships and has
nothing but praises for her.
“She’s a little lady but feisty,” said
James, adding he spotted Lee’s talent
when she first joined his school at age six.
“She can go all the way, Shalene has a lot
of potential.”
Lee, 18, has proven herself as a prolific
contender judging from her rankings in
the previous stints in several international
competition.
Proof of this were the gold medals she
bagged in the Junior International Cup in
Las Vegas, Nevada last April, and another
top place finish in Toronto and in Junior
Pan- Am Games in Bolivia.
Mom Edna is very supportive of her and
last August she even took time to be with
her daughter in Bolivia.
“As much as possible I always want to
be at her side whenever she fights,” says
Edna.
Lee, together with 17-year old Khyber
Barnett have been under the watchful eye
of their mentor James for about a decade
and has witnessed the pair grow in skill and
technique from the time they were still kids
“There were a few girls in my
school who would call me names,
because karate isn’t as much of
a girlie sport. They were like, oh
wow, you should be in ballet or
whatever. I was probably 10. I
just let it go.”
- Shalene Lee
up to now in their teens.
Looking past the world championships,
which happen every two years, the global
karate community is crossing its fingers
that the sport will be included in the
Olympics for the first time in 2020. Host
country Japan has made that request to the
Olympic governing body, and a decision is
expected next summer.
James, himself an internationally
respected instructor and competition
judge, said Lee “will be in her prime by
2020. Oh you bet, for sure.”
Lee and Barnett are among nine
athletes from B.C. going to this year’s
Jakarta world championships, and among
27 Canadians overall.
Lee, who graduated this year from Sir
Winston Churchill secondary, said she was
first attracted to karate when she signed up
for swimming lessons at the YMCA, and
saw punching and kicking in the gym next
Shalene in one of her title-clinching international performance.
to the pool.
“I told my Mom, oh my gosh, that looks
really cool,” she said. “It was just fun, I
loved it from there.”
Lee and Barnett are both heading to
Jakarta as reigning national champions in
kata (forms) for their age groups. James
said no-one spotted Barnett at first as a
future champion.
“There were a few girls in my school
who would call me names, because karate
isn’t as much of a girlie sport. They were
like, oh wow, you should be in ballet or
whatever,” Lee said. “I was probably 10.
I just let it go.”
Both Barnett and Lee have taken
some knocks during international kumite
(sparring) competit ions. The pair have been
frequent flyers, competing in tournaments
in Canada, the U.S., South America and
Europe over the years.
Lee is holding off her post-secondary
education until the January semester. “For
now I’m just taking a quick break from
school so I could really focus on karate.”
Philippine hockey team to join SEA Games in 2017
By Alex Mino
Ice Sports in the Philippines is starting
to gain popularity as the Philippine hockey
team is making strides in preparation for
the Southeast Asian Games in 2017 in
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The SM Group is solidly behind the
preparation for the biennial meet which
marks the debut of ice hockey as a distinct
sports discipline in the Southeast Asian
Games.
A string of successful stints in previous
international competition paved the way for
the SM Group to throw their all-out support
to the team and to send them to Malaysia.
Both the youth team and adult squad
have a proven track record in the past that
will play a vital role that can be leveraged to
be at par with other Asian countries.
The Philippine under-13 team recently
captured the Gold Cup at the Malaysia
Invitational. Despite losing their preliminary
games against Indonesia, Singapore and
host Malaysia. The pewee team showed
resiliency by knocking out the top seed
Indonesia to the tune of 3-0 upset win in
the semifinals.
In the finals, the Filipino kids forced
overtime and beat Singapore in the extra
frame, 3-2.
In the open category, the Philippine
men’s team made their mark af ter
emerging victorious at the 13th annual
BOCI-Prudential Asset Management Ice
Hockey Championships in Hong Kong last
September.
The average age of the Philippine
Members of the Philippine hockey team after bagging the Hong Kong Invitational a few months ago.
squad was in the range of 30 to 35 with
Jorell Crisostomo the youngest at 15
and Scott Young the oldest at 46. The
Philippines crushed Mongolia, 6-1, Hong
Kong, 7-0 and the United Arab Emirates,
4-1, then lost to Mitsubishi of Japan, 6-4.
In the final, the Philippines and Mitsubishi
battled for the crown with the Filipinos
gaining sweet revenge, 3-1.
“Realizing the capability of the Filipino
to excel in unconventional sports like ice
hockey, SM Lifestyle Entertainment Inc.
(SMLEI) brings focus to programs that will
enrich the varied and exceptional sports
of the Philippines,” said SMLEI president
Ed Tejerero.
Not only in ice hockey, The SM group
is also contemplating to push figure
skating to the next level after the dazzling
performance of Michael Martinez in the
2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
SMLEI has supported the growth of
athletes on ice through skating programs
such as the recent Summer Skate, a
developmental platform for beginning
figure skaters at the SM rinks in the Mall of
Asia, Southmall and Megamall. The rinks
at the Mall of Asia and Southmall were
used to hone the skills of talented hockey
players.
Martinez is backed up by an annual
budget of P9 Million from SMLEI to travel
the globe in bringing honor to the country
as a figure skater. He’s currently ranked in
the world’s top 30 and his goal is to finish
in the top 10 at the World Championships
in Boston on March 28-April 3 next year.
Martinez is now in Beijing to participate
at the Audi Cup of China. Incidentally, he
turned 19 years old this month.