FORMER ace Tiger Jin Tshomlee Go promised one thing in his return trip to the Olympics—no more choking on the big stage.
Booted out early in the first round of his under 58-kilogram medal quest in the 2004 Athens Olympics, Go expects to go head-on with the same opponents he had locked horns with on his way to the Beijing meet in August.
This time, however, Go will no longer be the jittery rookie of four years ago.
Conquering numerous mat wars since Athens, including a domination of the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand and a third-place finish at the World Olympic Qualifying Games in England both in 2007, the now more-experienced Go feels excited about his chances in Beijing.
“I will take it just one step at a time,” Go told the Varsitarian. “Hopefully, I will reach the medal (rounds) without even realizing it.”
Go first joined the world’s biggest sporting event back in 2004 as a gangling Olympic freshman, the only Filipino to emerge from the prestigious Paris qualifying tournament the year before.
At the Olympics proper, Go came close to averting the newbie drawback despite taking the measure of Spanish sensation Juan Ramos in his debut match only to fall short by a point, 6-7.
“I didn’t let the loss drag me down,” Go said. “Actually, when I train, it’s the thought of beating my opponents that helps me focus.”
He really needed such an intense motivation. After all, the Doha Asian Games silver medalist, who was bracketed in a highly talented pool, will have the “unavoidable” task of facing anyone among world champions Ramos (2007) and Iran’s Behzad Khodadad (2001), Ryan Carneli of Australia, Guillermo Perez of Mexico, Levent Tuncat of Germany, and Chinese Taipei’s Mu Yen Chu, the reigning Olympic gold medalist in the flyweight division. Go’s mission is to break the country’s eight-year-old Olympic medal drought.
The 27-year-old Go spent his final months before the Beijing Olympics in the country where the sport originated and is most revered — South Korea.
Along with fellow Olympian Mary Antonette Rivero, he trained heavily side-by-side with the Korean Marines and their coach Kim Hong Sik. This special preparation bankrolled by the Philippine Taekwondo Association also included workouts in the country’s best tae kwondo schools and gyms such as the Korea National College of Physical Education, Poomsaeng School, Yong In, and the Kyung Hee University and Military team.
Go’s daily training was supervised by national coaches Stephen Fernandez and Jobet Morales. It stretched round-the-clock with weight and physical conditioning, early morning exercises, fighting technique drills at noon, and sparring sessions in the evening. There were also rigorous work-out skirmishes opposite national athletes Marlon Avenido and Manuel Rivero Jr.
“I worked hard and will play even harder,” Go said. “There are no clear-cut favorites but all of [my opponents] have the potential to be one.”
His optimism springs from his training, which was specifically designed to counter the fighting styles of his opponents, most of whom he had already traded kicks with at least once.
“I’ve seen and played their game, so our strategy now is to develop techniques that would effectively turn the tables on them,” Go said.
“I feel blessed to have reached this far again. That is why I always find a moment to thank [God] before, during and after my fights,” he said. Arvee A. Fantilagan
