The national sambo team is riding the momentum of its historic campaign in the Asian and Oceania Sambo Championships as it shifts its focus to two prestigious world tournaments later this year.

Philippine Sambo Federation president Paolo Tancontian said the country’s breakthrough performance in the continental meet has boosted confidence as the team gears up for the World Beach Sambo Championships and the World Sambo Championships.

Speaking during the latest episode of Off the Court, the weekly online sports show of DAILY TRIBUNE, Tancontian said the successful hosting of the Asian and Oceania Championships in Manila exceeded expectations both on and off the mat.

The Philippines delivered its best-ever finish after collecting three gold medals to eclipse its previous record of two golds while ending the tournament with an impressive haul of 15 medals.

“We expected to surpass our two gold medals from last year, and we achieved that with three gold medals. Not only that, our non-national team athletes also contributed medals, giving us a total of 15,” Tancontian said.

“We already know what we are preparing for — the World Beach Sambo and the World Championships. We are already focused on that.”

The national team will first compete in the World Beach Sambo Championships scheduled on 12 to 13 September in Caraguatatuba, Brazil before heading to Uzbekistan for the World Sambo Championships from 6 to 8 November.

Leading the Filipinos’ campaign are Asian champions Aislinn Agnes Yap in the women’s -80-kilogram division, Jomary Torre in the women’s -50kg class and Princess Aumagel Cortez in the women’s -59kg category, who all captured gold medals during the continental championships.

Tancontian believes the country’s steady rise shows that the Philippines is beginning to challenge the traditional powers in the sport despite having a relatively young program.

“We’re still a young federation compared to other countries that have been in sambo for decades. We’ve only been together for about 10 or 11 years, but we’re already ranked No. 4 in the region,” Tancontian said.