RIO DE JANEIRO: Filipino taekwondo entry and the country’s only hope Kirstie Elaine Alora has what it takes to go far in the 2016 Rio Olympics, her coach believes.
Alora, a 26-year-old fighter who hails from Biñan, Laguna, will make her Olympic debut Saturday morning (Saturday evening Philippine time) in the women’s +67 kilogram division, reported Sun Star.
She reportedly faces an acid test in her opening match, an early battle with 2008 Beijing Olympics gold medalist and 2012 London Olympics bronze medalist Maria Espinoza of Mexico.
The Pinoy camp is not intimidated at all. “They’ve fought once, right after the Beijing Olympics, and the Mexican won, 2-1. Elaine can beat this Mexican,” said coach Roberto “Kitoy” Cruz, the report said.
Alora, according to her bemedalled coach, will have to rely on her speed to have a chance against Espinoza, and she will do just that.
“Elaine has been training well even while we were in Manila and since we arrived here in Rio almost a month ago,” Cruz, the former finweight king in the Southeast Asian Games, reportedly said.
Cruz is the most successful Filipino taekwondo jin, also having won three silver and two bronze medals in the World Championships, two bronze medals in the World Cup and a gold, a silver and a bronze in the Asian Championships, said the news portal.
He knows a good match when he sees one. “Kaya ni Elaine,” Cruz reportedly said on Friday as he quietly celebrated his 44th birthday.
Espinoza, gold medalist in the 2007 World Championships and 2016 Pan American Games, also stands 5-foot-8 like Alora. She is two years older at 28 and is just a couple of kilos heavier, reported Sun Star.
If Alora gets past Espinoza, she will need two more wins to make it to the finals and give the Philippines a crack at the highly-elusive Olympic gold.
Cruz knows what Alora needs to do to succeed in the country.
“Basta kailangan mabilis si Elaine. Dapat lumabas ang bilis niya sa laban na ito,” Cruz, overseeing Alora’s training here in Rio normally twice a day, reportedly said. “Yun talaga ang panglaban ni Elaine. Mabilis siya. Kung mabagal ka, kaya kani Elaine.”
