EVEN though sporting events have been knocked out due to the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the pandemic has never deterred taekwondo in the country.
It is very much alive—thanks to the initiative of the Philippine Taekwondo Association (PTA), which holds online tournaments.
“I myself was surprised with the reception among both players and coaches. I never expected so much acceptance and enthusiasm. In fact, we had over 40 players from Cebu joining 2020 Smart/MVPSF National Online Taekwondo Speed Kicking last July 11. This just goes to show our athletes’ hunger for competition. We can only credit our PTA officials for designing and implementing this,” PTA Region 7 chairman Tony del Prado told SunStar Cebu.
Since Covid-19 hit the Philippines, the PTA managed to take advantage of technology by holding classes, tournaments and belt promotions online.
Some of the tournaments held by PTA online are the 2020 Smart/MVP Sports Foundation National Online Poomsae Taekwondo Championships on May 29 to 31, 2020; the 2020 Smart/MVP Online National Taekwondo Speed Kicking Championships on July 11 and 12, 2020; and the 2020 Smart/ MVPSF Online Taekwondo Inter-School Poomsae Championships on July 25 and 26, 2020.
The PTA will stage its fourth pandemic-era national tournament, the 2020 SMART/MVPSF Online National Age Group Taekwondo Poomsae Championship on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2020.