DUE TO the heightened alert against the influenza A(H1N1) virus, an international judo tournament which UST was set to host last May 16 to 17 at the UST gym was postponed for September or October later this year.
“Everything has already been put into place – trophies, banners and of course, the list of athletes,” Jojo Arce, Tiger Judokas head coach and one of the main organizers of the event, told the Varsitarian. “It was very disappointing that the participating universities of Laos, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore all backed out at the last minute because of this virus.”
The tournament titled “Unending Grace: UST Friendship Games” aims to foster camaraderie among nations in line with the University’s quadricentennial promotion.
With the tournament called off, the Tiger Judokas will now have to wait until their Season 72 campaign ends before they could get a crack at the foreign opposition and 15 other universities from all over the country which include UAAP rivals Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University.
Philippine Tourism Authority general manager Mark Lapid and his father Sen. Lito Lapid were the main sponsors of the event. Mika Rafaela A. Barrios
