The Philippine national karate squad delivered the country’s third medal in the Asian Games 2026 after beating Thailand, 4-1, in the bronze medal match of the women’s kata team event on Tuesday at Toyohashi Gymnasium.
Samantha Emmanuelle Veguillas, Ysabielle Arrogante and Rebecca Cyril Torres delivered a composed performance, posting scores of 7.8, 7.7, 7.9, 8.7 and 8.1, against Thailand’s 7.6, 7.5, 7.7, 8.5 and 8.3.
‘I feel like it was our teamwork. I feel like we were always showing up for each other. We trained non stop regardless how long or regardless of the time. So, I feel like we were able to show up for each other, motivate each other,’ Veguillas said.
Arrogante said the team blocked out its opponents and focused solely on executing its routine.
‘We just gave it our best. We didn’t think about who we were up against. We just focused on ourselves. This is ours – we earned the bronze,’ she said.
The Filipino trio won their quarterfinal match against Cambodia, 5-0, but fell to Iran in the semifinal, 0-5.
Karate Pilipinas president and Chef de Mission Richard Lim credited the athletes’ sacrifices during their preparation for the Asian Games.
‘I would say, though, yung sacrifice nila. The time that they dedicated to the training. Some of them stopped attending school temporarily just to concentrate for the Asian Games. And they are away from their families due to the demands of the training,’ Lim said.