Metro Manila (May 18, CNN Philippines) – There’s no stopping 2016 Rio Olympian Kirstie Elaine Alora from punching her second straight ticket to the Olympics.
Alora – the country’s lone representative in taekwondo during the 2016 Summer Games – said she’s now at the top of her game and is more confident than ever about her chances of making it to the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
“I’m 100% ready and even more. I’m just waiting for fight day and I’m very excited to get the Olympic ticket again,” Alora told CNN Philippines.
The 31-year-old taekwondo jin leads a four-man national team that will compete in the 2021 Asian Taekwondo Olympic Qualification Tournament on May 21-22 in Amman, Jordan.
Joining her are 2019 Southeast Asian Games medalists Pauline Lopez, Kurt Barbosa, and Arven Alcantara.
Alora is set to see action in the women’s +67kg category on Saturday, where she expects to face tough contenders from Central Asia.
“Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan will be my toughest opponents but somehow we’ve already prepared for them before even coming here,” Alora said.
“We had video training and we really watched and scouted our possible opponents,” she added.
Despite the several limitations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alora said spending nearly five months in a training bubble in Calamba, Laguna has allowed her to prepare better physically and mentally.
“Being away from our families and not being able to go out of the bubble was our biggest dilemma but somehow it was more beneficial because we got to focus more on our mindset by just training and resting,” Alora said.
It’s been a long tradition for the Philippines to send elite taekwondo bets to the Olympics since it became an official medal sport in the 2000 Sydney Games, except in the 2012 London edition.
An Olympic medal in the sport, however, has always eluded the country.
During the 2016 Rio Olympics, Alora fell short in her own quest after losing her opening match against Mexico’s Maria Espinoza. She was relegated to the repechage where she bowed to Wiam Dislam of Morocco.
Alora – who’s also a 3-time SEA Games gold medalist and 2-time Asian Games bronze medalist – vowed to work harder to deliver the first Olympic medal for her sport in the country.
“That’s really my goal if I get to qualify again in the Olympics. My target is to have a medal,” she said.
Alora also shared her optimism and confidence in her teammates who are looking to book their first Olympic appearance this weekend.
“I only tell them one thing and it’s for them to remember that we all went through the same journey. We’ve prepared and trained really hard for this and that has to show in our game and performance,” Alora said.
“There shouldn’t be any pressure because pressure is the one thing that will pull us down, so we just need to enjoy,” she added.
