By Vince Matthew Jaramilla

Far Eastern University (FEU) Jins and Lady Jins shared the teams’ desire to push further after an underwhelming stint in the 2024 SMART/Manuel V. Pangilinan Sports Foundation (MVPSF) National Taekwondo Championship yesterday, July 28, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila City.

"Grateful pa rin [kami] kahit hindi namin nakuha ‘yung inaasam naming panalo at parang wake-up call sa’min ‘to na i-push pa ‘yung team sa training para sa darating na UAAP [University Athletic Association of the Philippines] [season] (We’re still grateful even though we didn’t achieve our desired success and this kind of serves as a wake-up call to push the team further in training for the upcoming UAAP season)," Lady Jin Czarina Mae Danganan said in an interview with FEU Advocate.

The green-and-gold squads competed in the Advanced categories of the Senior Male and Senior Female Divisions, wherein a three-versus-three format was in place, needing at least two Jins to win for their team to move on.

However, the contending student-athletes were unable to get the better over their first matchups, ultimately eliminating a medal-less FEU from the whole competition.

Considering their performance in the tourney, Danganan specified sparring, resistance, and weights as the shortcomings they need to work on.

“Siguro ‘yung things to improve is ‘yung sa sparring namin, resistensya, [at] weights. Ang dami pa kasi naming kulang sa napansin namin ngayon, kasi elims pa lang nahulog na ‘yung team so ‘yun siguro ‘yung iwe-work [on] namin (I think the things to improve is our sparring, resistance, and weights. We still have a lot of weaknesses from what we observed today because we were already eliminated after the elims so those are probably what we’ll work on),” she stated.

Jin Lawrence Borres then echoed their need for more practice and highlighted the team’s hunger for victory.

“Kailangan namin talaga ng marami pang ensayo… May kanya-kanya kasing [technique] kada player so siguro, mastery is needed. The mentality ng team ngayon is gutom—gutom talaga manalo lalo na sa upcoming season, nag-e-aim pa rin kami for a podium finish (We really need a lot more practice… Each player has their own technique so maybe, mastery is needed. Right now, the team has a hungry mentality—hungry to win as we are still aiming for a podium finish in the upcoming season),” he shared.

Meanwhile, the Jins who participated in the Junior Male Advanced category managed to move past their first matches but were also unable to compete for medals after falling in their succeeding fight.

Eager to reignite their glory, the Morayta-based kickers will see action in the upcoming UAAP Season 87.

The SMART/MVPSF National Taekwondo Championship is an annual taekwondo event by the Philippine Taekwondo Association where rising athletes of different divisions, levels, and regions can compete for national recognition.

(Photo by Justine Jaerigg/FEU Advocate)