THERE was irrepressible glee in Junna Tsukii’s voice after practicing with her national teammates inside the ballroom of a plush hotel in Ortigas, Pasig City last week for the first time since she was last with them in the Asian karate championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan in December.

“I spent three months training alone in Japan with my father Shinzuki. I can feel everyone’s positive energy, which is very good. I am inspired by them,” the Tokyo-based karateka said of her reunion with the rest of the national team.

• SEA Games: Philippines wins karate gold, thanks to Junna Tsukii

Tsukii and Jamie Christine Lim, daughter of basketball legend Avelino “Samboy” Lim, were the country’s gold medalists at the 2019 30th Southeast Asian Games and will spearhead the country’s campaign in the Vietnamese SEA Games karate competitions set May 18 to 20 at the Nin Binh Province Gymnasium.

• SEA Games: Samboy Lim's daughter Jamie Lim gets PH's second karate gold

Turkish national coach Okay Arpa, who has been with the squad for the past four years, is hoping that the PH karate standard-bearers will exceed their haul of 2 gold, 1 silver and 9 bronze medals from three years ago.

“Our target is a minimum three golds” said Arpa, including Tsukii and Lim, of the country’s prospects in the event in 31st SEA Games, citing the intensive training the national team has had for the last seven months, on top of their international exposure despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have been doing preparations for the last seven months. We have had some good results in international competitions. We have not stopped. We have had an edge over other (Southeast Asian) countries when it comes to preparation.”

Following the national team’s stint in the Asian meet, a majority of them was back in training at Teacher’s Camp in Baguio City in mid-January through the support of the Philippine Sports Commission.

Tsukii and Lim emerged as the country’s most outstanding performers in the Kazakhstan capital, winning a silver medal each in the women’s -50kg and -61kg divisions, respectively, in kumite (sparring).

The Filipino karatekas also saw action in the 25th World Senior championships in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, as well as in the last SEA Karate Federation tournament last March in Phnom Penh, Cambodia where Rica Torres captured a silver medal in women’s individual kata (forms).

“The performance of our athletes is very high. Junna and Jamie are very near to gold-medal winning form. Our target is also that all of our athletes in the Vietnam SEA Games at least bring home a medal. What we strive for is quality. We want our team to be strong overall,” Arpa stressed.

The Turkish mentor said also not to be overlooked was Jason Macaalay, a 2019 SEA Games bronze medalist in the men’s -60-kg. division, who reached the fifth round of the world Olympic qualifying tournament in Paris, France in June 2021.

National kata coach Chino Veguillas shared the sentiments of the Turkish coach, saying that “we are not looking at our ranking with the other teams but how most, if not all, of our karatekas will bring home a medal.”

Veguillas, a gold medalist in the men’s team kata in the 1993 Singapore SEA Games, recalled that out of 13 athletes who saw action in the 2019 Philippine Games “only one did not win a medal. We want that to be the same here.”

Among those the national team is banking on in capturing mints in kata were Joko Vasquez and Torres, medalists three years ago when the country hosted the regional sportsfest for the fourth time, according to karate chief Ricky Lim.

Vasquez, 20, was grateful for the training and international experience he has had, including a stint in the world Olympic qualifiers, and vowed he would go all out for gold in his second outing in the SEA Games.

“Since eto na ’yung second time ko sa SEA Games, ang goal ko talaga ngayon makauwi ng gold medal. Malaking bagay ’yung naging international exposure namin. Dito ko nakita na kaya naman pala. (Since this is my second SEA Games, I am eyeing gold. Our international exposure played a big role in realizing that we can do it),” said Vasquez, who reached the third round of the Olympic qualifiers.

Torres, 29, said she realized the same, as her teammate after being chosen to compete in the women’s individual kata and competing in the SEAKF tournament in Cambodia.

“It was good that I was able to compete in the SEAKF championships in Cambodia. I faced a lot of pressure there but when I won a silver medal, I realized that I can be at par with them. Kaya pala (I can do it). They will be the same rivals I will face in the SEA Games,” Torres noted.

Lim said that Torres stood out among the women’s kata members that also includes Sarah Pangilinan and Sakura Alforque following an evaluation of the national coaching staff led by Veguillas.

“Together with the coaching staff, we evaluated all three and Rica stood out. Her winning the silver medal in the SEAKF tournament in Cambodia confirmed it,” he said.

Among those likewise bidding for gold in her SEA Games debut is perky Lemon Misu, 20, who will see action in the women’s -68kg division and copped a bronze medal in the under-21 division of the Asian tournament.

“Mananalo po ako ng gold (I will win the gold),” Misu said confidently in fluent Fiilpino. “Nakita ko ang mga kalaban at kaya ko. Mabilis po ako. (I have seen my foes and I can beat them. I am fast).”

Lim added of the Tokyo-born karateka: “Misu is quite strong. Her legs are built like logs. When she kicked the hand of Jaimie in practice, it hurt a lot.”

Veguillas said that part of boosting national team morale was having them train inside a top hotel no less amid pleasant surroundings in the final phase of their workouts for the Vietnam SEA Games.

“We wanted to show our athletes how important they are and this is one way of showing it,” said Lim, who thanked the hotel owner, whose young child is one of his students, for accommodating their request.

Summing up the mindset of the squad was Lim, who has put her pursuit of a masters degree on old, in what they intend to achieve in Vietnam.

“We have been training super hard since we started in Baguio last September. Competing in the world and Asian tournaments was a huge preparation for us. We are ready and we will do our best in Vietnam to bring honor for our country,” she said.