THE national judo team is bracing for at least two imports from Ukraine set to suit up for Cambodia in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games judo tournament opening on May 13 at the Choy Changvar International Convention and Exposition Center in Phnom Penh.
One of them is set to see action in the men’s 66kg class where back-to-back champion Shugen Nakano of the Philippines is competing, according to Philippine Judo Federation national sports director Emir Reyes.
Reyes said he learned of the development after he and PJF secretary general Dave Carter, who will oversee the Cambodia SEA Games judo competitions, conducted a course for judges and other technical officials recently in the Cambodian capital.
“Like what other countries do to boost their performances in international play by importing athletes, Cambodia has done it in judo by naturalizing three Ukrainians who will now compete for them internationally,” he said
“At least two of them will be competing in the SEA Games. One of them is competing in the same weight class as Shugen,” noted Reyes.
Reyes said that before the SEA Games judo tournament starts, they are trying to establish the identities of the two Ukrainian judokas to find out if they had previously competed for their home country in possible violation of international judo competition rules.
Nakano was one of the country’s two judo gold medalists in the Vietnam SEA Games, the other being fellow Filipino-Japanese Rena Furukawa, who ruled the women’s 57kg class.
Reyes and judo chief Ali Sulit were optimistic that given Nakano’s extensive training and experience, he would be able to bring home the bacon for the third straight time in the regional sportsfest.
“We know what Shugen is capable of doing and he definitely won’t give up the title that easily even if he should face the Ukrainian in the finals,” stressed Sulit, who is eyeing to double the country’s haul of two gold, two silver and four bronze medals in last year’s Vietnam Games.
Among the judokas expected to contend for the gold are Vietnam SEA Games silver medalists Daryl John Mercado Honrada, John Viron Ferrer and Khrizzie Pabulayan Mamero, who all lost to Vietnamese rivals in the finals last year in Hanoi.
