SEAGames Mens Wushu / December 02,2019
Silver Medalist Jones Llabres of the Philippines in the Men’s Taijijian .at the World Trade Center in Manila .
INQUIRER PHOTO /AUGUST DELA cRUZ
MANILA, Philippines—He may not have struck gold but Jones Inso was more than proud to represent and take some hardware home for the Philippines in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.
Inso snatched the silver medal with a score of 9.65 in the men’s taijijian category in the wushu competition in what was his first foray into the regional event.
His mark was just .03 less than gold medalist Choon How Lo’s score of 9.68.
“This is my first SEA Games and of course it’s really fulfilling and I’m really happy that I was able to contribute a medal for the Philippines,” said Inso in Filipino.
As of writing, the Philippines already won 25 gold, 15 silver, and nine bronze medals in the competition already eclipsing the 24 titles it won in the 2017 Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Inso had to wait his turn in the competition since he was the seventh artist to perform but he knew he was able to shake off any negativity heading into his routine.
The soft-spoken Inso said he felt his nerves tighten up on Sunday thinking about the competition and he was able to let out a sigh of relief when the fateful day arrived.
“Actually yesterday I was really nervous because I felt the pressure from the audience and from my countrymen but today my muscles loosened up and I was able to perform properly,” said Inso.
His silver medal also validated the this team’s hard work heading into the SEA Games.
Inso said he and his teammates are the ones responsible for setting up their practice facility and also dismantling their stage after their training sessions.
“My teammates and I spent a lot of fun times setting up our training venues then dismantling it after,” said Inso who already owns a gold and a silver medal from the 1st Asian Traditional Wushu in 2018.