by Fredrick Armand Buendia
Some 3,200 martial arts masters and representatives from 106 nations assembled in Chungju, a city in the central South Korean province of North Chungcheong, last August 2019 to participate in the Chungju World Martial Arts Masterships under the slogan “Beyond the Times, Bridge the World.” Notably, in the roster of athletes were 369 top-notch martial artists who have earned medals in world and national competitions over the last three years. The opening ceremony saw an audience of about 10,000 citizens, dignitaries, athletes and officials.
Lending their esteemed presence in the event were officials like Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon; Lee Kee-heung, Head of the Korean Sports & Olympic Committee and a member of the International Olympic Committee; North Chungcheong Gov. Lee Si-jong who is likewise the chairperson of the 2019 Chungju World Martial Arts Masterships Organizing Committee; Choue Chung-won, president of the World Taekwondo Federation, who also serves as president of the 2019 Chungju World Martial Arts Masterships; former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon serving as an honorary president of the 2019 Chungju World Martial Arts Masterships; and Rafael Chiulli, president of the Global Association of International Sports Federation (Yonhap, 2019). Apart from host South Korea, contenders came from the Philippines, Iran, Thailand, Japan, Korea, Nepal, Cambodia, India, Taiwan, DRC Congo, Congo Brazzaville, Nigeria, Zambia, Ethiopia, Cote de’ Ivoire, Benin, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Brazil, Paraguay, USA and Argentina, and Kenya.
“The World Martial Arts Masterships is the world’s only comprehensive martial arts competition event that promotes world peace, bringing world martial family together,” said Secretary General Lee-Jae Young.
(L-R) Psychology Department Faculty Members Alvin Jacob, Rudy Danganan Jr., Roy Paul Avila, Dr. Alicia Q. Tablizo, Christian Edo Abaga,Joshua Juanzo with Gold medalist Unjong Estrabela )
In this International Masterships event, an alumna of Our Lady of Fatima University(OLFU) demonstrated her alma mater’s brand of excellence. She is no other than Unjoy Ai Moonville A. Estrabela, Batch 2019 of the Department of Psychology, College of Art and Science from OLFU’s Antipolo Campus. Participating specifically in the World Tong Il Moo do Championships, she competed and bagged the Gold Medal against Thailand and four other contending countries.
Ms. Moonville said she did not expect that the Tong Il Moo do Philippine Chapter would invite her to compete internationally. She shared that, since childhood, it had been her dream to go beyond national competitions and represent the flag of the Philippines. Then, one providential afternoon, a key official from the Tong Il Moo do organization asked Ms. Moonville if she had a passport, and if she was willing to compete under the 51 below category sparring division. With utmost support from her family and friends, she grabbed the opportunity. Ms. Moonville, alongside participants from other countries, underwent stance demonstration training as preparation for the actual event. Unfortunately, she suffered an injury during the said phase. Initially, she was advised that she might not be able to compete in the event anymore; however, with therapy sessions and imbibing OLFU’s “ACHIEVER” values, she courageously fought her way to the win! Hence, alumna Unjong Ai Moonville A. Estrabela demonstrated her mettle, and is living proof of the grit that OLFU students and alumni are made of. Cheers to the Gold Medalist of the World Tong Il Moo do Championships in the Chungju World Martial Arts Masterships 2019!
