Napolis targets 2nd World Games medal

CHENGDU, China — Jiujitsu standout Kaila Napolis gets another chance at winning another medal when she tries her luck in the open division that is expected to test every ounce of her strength on Tuesday at the Jianyang Cultural and Sports Centre Gymnasium.

The Muntinlupa City pride, who fell just short of the country's first gold in the women's -52-kilogram ne-waza event Sunday night, competes in the open category which will be a scramble of all athletes from Napolis' weight up to the 63kg division.

There, if the stars align, the Filipino grappler could seek payback and meet her finals tormentor, South Korea's Eon Ju Im, for a chance at bagging her second medal and further give the Philippine delegation, supported by Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham Bambol" Tolentino, a measure of pride halfway through the competition.

"I believe in miracles," Napolis said while being wary of the challenging work at hand.

"I don't know what will happen ahead since I will be battling other fighters in heavier divisions, but we'll see what I can do for the country. I'm always ready," she added.

Eighteen athletes from three weight classes — 52, 57, and 63kgs — will be competing from Round of 16 up to medal rounds set in the afternoon.

"Those in the 63kgs are surely tough to beat," said Annie Ramirez, who gets her shot at redemption after an early exit in the 57kg division.

On a rather light day in competition venues for athletes and team officials, the Filipinos, who are backed by the Philippine Sports Commission, used the spare time to recover from the toll of Chengdu action, some visiting recreational places inside the Athletes' Village, others doing the laundry, while some had fun watching the musical performance from Chinese acts Sunday night.

But hostilities will resume on all fronts the day after, with Hergie Bacyadan, the Paris Olympics boxer, returning to her national team duty as a kickboxer at the Sichuan Gymnasium.

The Kalinga Province native will test her mettle in the women's 70kg division, with her foe yet to be revealed with the draw set Monday evening.

Chezka Centeno, despite losing her last preliminary game in women's 10-ball against Yu Han of China, 6-7, will advance to the quarterfinals at the Civil Aviation Flight University of China Tianfu Campus Gymnasium. She beat Easton Savannah of the US, 7-2, last Sunday.

Fighting for survival are Rubilen Amit and Jeff de Luna, who both lost their first games and will need a ton of effort against Shasha Lui of China and Oliver Szolnoki of Poland, respectively, in their crucial matches being played as of press time.

After losing, 0-18, against Switzerland, the men's floorball team is hoping to end its Chengdu mission on a high note when it faces the host nation in the classification match for seventh place at 10 p.m. Tuesday at the Xindu Xiangcheng Sports Centre.