Sakura Alforte wins SEA Games 2023 gold in karate
Sakura Alforte wins the gold in karate at the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia. June Navarro/INQUIRER
PHNOM PENH—Sakura Alforte’s near-flawless routine netted the Philippines a gold medal in karate on Saturday at the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
Alforte got the nod of the judges and scored 40.8 points in the women’s individual kata, beating last year’s champion Phuong Nguyen of Vietnam (40.2) to strike the first podium finish for the national karate team at the Chroy Changvar Hall here.
Sakura Alforte strikes the first gold for the PH karate team in the women's individual kata at the 32nd SEA Games pic.twitter.com/tTRsPvWHzA
— June Navarro (@junavINQ) May 6, 2023
“The past few months I’ve been thinking about the SEA Games. I’ve trained hard and the work that I put in paid off,” said the 20-year-old Filipino-Japanese who likewise won the gold in the Karate 1 Youth League A in Coruna, Spain recently.
It was another triumph for Alforte, who triumphed in the Southeast Asian Championship in Manila two months ago.
“One competition that I dream to participate in is the Asian Games,” said Alforte, whose family moved to Japan after spending his childhood in Manila.
Enrico Vasquez, meanwhile, added a bronze medal in the men’s individual kata.
