HANGZHOU. – Among the sad victims of the COVID-19 pandemic was one-armed taekwondo jin Alain Ganapin, who missed competing in the Tokyo Paralympic Games in 2021 when he was hit by the virus just a few days before leaving for the Japanese capital.
Instead of being discouraged, Ganapin vowed to go through the whole grueling process anew to fulfill his Paralympic dream with the help of coach Gershon Bautista.
The journey to the Paris Paralympic Games began in May 2022 when he ruled the men’s minus 70kg division of the Asian Para Games Qualification Tournament in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, punching a ticket to the 4th Hangzhou Asian Para Games here.
“Hindi biro po ‘yung pinagdaanan namin, especially dahil nu’ng nangyari sa Tokyo na na-miss namin. Kaya naging emosyonal po ako ng manalo sa qualifying sa Asian Para Games,” said Ganapin, 25, in an interview with Bautista beside him.
Bautista said the athlete has not only been undergoing rigorous training for the last three months at the Philippine Taekwondo Association Central Gym inside the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex but also had intense physical conditioning for this meet.
“He is better off now compared to three months ago. Kapag sparring, nahihirapan na rin ang mga kalaban ni Alain,” Bautista noted of his ward’s tune-up bouts with some of the able-bodied national team members, among them celebrated veteran and Southeast Asian Games champ Samuel Morrison.
“We believe he has achieved a good fitness level for him to perform well in this Asian Para Games,” said the coach, adding his ward’s strength and stamina levels were at par before being stricken by the virus, if not better.
“Hopefully, ‘yung naipundar namin ni Alain in his strength and conditioning for this event will be more than enough,” added the coach of the athlete’s maiden appearance here supported by the Philippine Sports Commission.
Proof that Ganapin was back in competitive shape was last July when he bagged a bronze in the Australian Open, an Olympic ranking qualifying competition.
He would be killing two birds with one stone if he achieves a podium finish in his debut here.
“Kapag mag-podium finish si Alain, tataas din ‘yung world ranking niya,” explained Bautista, who revealed that his ward is currently ranked No. 24 in the world. “He has a bigger chance of making it to Paris if he is within the top 20 in the world because this event has more qualifying points.”
“‘Yung maka-compete sa Paralympic Games ang aming ultimate goal ni coach. Nais ko na matapos ng maayos at makauwi ng medalya,” said the athlete with determination in his voice.
The country has never had a taekwondo jin competing in the Paralympic Games, and should everything go according to plan, Ganapin is keen on being the one by going all-out for golden glory here.
