By REY C. LACHICA
HANGZHOU, China – Jiu-jitsu star Annie Ramirez gave Team Philippines its third gold medal with another masterful win over a familiar foe Friday, Oct. 7, in the 19th Asian Games at the Xiaoshan Linpu Gymnasium here.
Working on her strategy to near perfection, the 33-year-old Ramirez beat Kazakhstan’s Galina Duvanova, 2-0, in the final of the women’s 57-kilogram, a victory she considered as one of her finest in her sporting career.
In clinching the gold, Ramirez won all her four matches by sheer superiority, starting with Le Thi Thuong of Vietnamese in the first round, Fiona Toh of Singapore in the quarterfinals and Shamsa Alameri of the United Arab Emirates.
“I am so happy with this win, I really work hard for this,” said Ramirez, who bided her time before overpowering her 5-foot-7 rival with a sweeping move during their 5-minute contest.
Though she was pinned to the ground most of the time, Ramirez said it was part of her game plan before making a daring move in the last minute.
“I was down for most of the match but I had the control, at alam kong anong oras ako gagalaw,” said the teary-eyed Ramirez.
Ramirez’s victory came a day after Margarita “Meggie” Ochoa reigned supreme in the women’s -48-kilogram final.
Earlier, Kaila Napolis bagged the bronze in the women’s -52kg after pulling off a stunning 2-0 win over World Championship veteran Hessa Alshamsi of the United Arab Emirates.
That made the jiu-jitsu association the most successful team so far with two gold and one bronze medals, underscoring its new-found fame.
It even outshone boxing who managed only one silver medal courtesy of Eumir Marcial on Thursday night.
But Marcial’s defeat was clouded by controversy although he already accepted his fate graciously.
Counting the bronze produced by team of Jason Huerte, Mark Joseph Gonzales, Rheyjey Ortouste, Ronsited Gabayeron and Jom Lerry Rafael in sepak takraw, Team PH now has 3 gold, 2 silver, and 12 bronze medals. In the 2018 Jakarta Games, Team PH tallied 4-2-15 in 61 sports.
The PH sepak takraw bets lost to the Malaysians, 2-0, but still secured the bronze.
Ramirez’s victory was a redemption of sort as she suffered anxiety after losing in her first match five years ago.
It was Ramirez’s third win over Duvanova in four bouts, but judo icon and now jiu-jitsu coach Johh Baylon said that lost hardly mattered at all.
