‘Hail Mary’ kick denies Uy the gold

KRISTOPHER Robert Uy came within sight of ultimate success only to squander the potential feat in the end.

With the clock winding down, Dmitriy Shokin of Uzbekistan connected with a surprise turning side kick en route to the gold medal in the men’s +87-kilogram finals of the Asian Taekwondo Championships late Monday evening.

“I was 16 seconds away from the gold,” said Uy, who saw his one-point edge vanish after Shokin rallied in the third and final round for a come-from-behind 7-4 victory.

“It was a Hail Mary shot. Tough loss, but I’m still thankful for the silver,” added the reigning Southeast Asian Games champion and 2014 Swiss Open gold medalist.

Shokin, ranked No. 1 in the world and the current Asian Games champ, unleashed the crucial jolt to the body that erased Uy’s 4-3 lead in the closing seconds.

The Uzbek finished the contest with another kick when the Filipino desperately tried to move in, frustrating the huge Filipino crowd at the Marriott Hotel Grand Ballroom.

Kirstie Elaine Alora dropped her semifinal match with Seavmey Sorn of Cambodia to finish with a bronze in the women’s -73kg.

Alora, who earned a trip to the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, also lost to the Rio-bound Sorn in the finals of the Asian Olympic qualifying tournament last Saturday.

The Philippines absorbed successive defeats yesterday after the pair of podium finishes with six Filipino jins wiped out prior to the medal round.