Taekwondo team bags Zamboanga Peninsula title

A SIX-YEAR-OLD boy and his companions have stood out in the recently-concluded 1st Regional 2012 New Face Taekwondo Championship here in Zamboanga Peninsula.

The tournament, which was held last Saturday in Pagadian City, was dubbed as the “2nd SK Invitational Tournament.”

The team from Zamboanga City captured the over-all championship title as they went home with seven gold, five silver and three bronze medals.

Benjamin Jedrik Cabato, an incoming Grade 1 pupil of Puriculture Center Elementary School, dominated the Group 0 category of the children division for boys.

The young Cabato was part of the 18-man taekwondo team from Zamboanga City that participated in the tournament organized by the Pagadian Taekwondo Parents Association in coordination with Youth Council Federation of Pagadian headed by its President Lance Samuel Co.

Like Cabato, who pinched in one gold medal from the zero category, other team players also reaped six more gold medals, five silver medals and three bronze medals to make the Zamboanga City team the over-all champion of the tournament.

The other gold medalists were Faust Robert Alvarez, Maura Christine Delos Reyes, RJ Quiaoit, Brandon Recinto, Adriane Kyle Faustino, and Jophn Romar Arboiz.

The silver medalists were Jahiddin Handang, Edwino Marquez Jr., Jelsea Arboiz, Rhalp John Buquis and Trisha Faye Domingo, while the bronze medalists were Sharmina Handang, Nel Andriane Enad and Raniel Dexter Buquis.

Leading the team were coaches Emmanuel Flores, Robert Flores, Cesar Oliver Barcillios and Benzar Tingkahan with Virgie Handang as the coordinator. (Bong Garcia)