Patrick King Perez strikes gold in taekwondo poomsae.
PHNOM PENH—On cloud nine following a magnificent performance, Patrick King Perez easily became the darling of the crowd when he ruled the men’s recognized poomsae individual on Friday at the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
Perez was ecstatic after his final score flashed across the screen and somersaulted on his victory run to the delight of a wildly-cheering Filipino crowd at the Chroy Changvar Convention Hall here.
“It hasn’t sunk in yet. I’m so happy I just couldn’t believe it,’’ said the 23-year-old Perez of his first SEA Games gold medal.
The De La Salle University standout in the UAAP scored an average total of 7.46 points, besting the finest taekwondo-poomsae artists from Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar and Laos.
“I told myself that my next target is a gold medal here in the SEA Games after I finished second last year in the men’s team event,’’ said Perez after beginning his journey with a team bronze in the 2019 SEA Games in Manila.
“Dreams do come true after all the hard work,’’ added Perez, whose next target is the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China in September.