SEA Games: Rodolfo Reyes launches PH taekwondo bid with poomsae gold

Rodolfo Reyes Jr. during the taekwondo poomsae competition of the 30th Southeast Asian Games. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Rodolfo Reyes Jr. bagged the Philippines’ first gold in taekwondo after ruling the men’s recognized poomsae individual category Saturday at Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.

Reyes, already a decorated martial artist before the regional tiff, had a near flawless performance with a score of 8.349 for the gold.

Thailand’s Pattarapong Sengmueang claimed the silver with a score of 8.199 while Myanmar’s Sun Shine and Grocer Augustine Anak of Malaysia tied for the bronze medal after a 7.849 mark.

“It’s an amazing feeling because all the hard work we’ve had in almost four months of training was really worth it,” said Reyes in Filipino. “It’s heartwarming to perform in front of my fellow Filipinos.”

Reyes said he and his teammates trained in Korea and also joined several competitions in preparation for the SEA Games.

A gold medalist in the 2015 and 2017 SEA Games, Reyes was also a gold medalist in the ASEAN Taekwondo Championship, Korea Open, and the Asian Open Taekwondo Championships in 2019.