La Salle, Arellano jins shine in Phl Taekwondo League
Powerhouse De La Salle and surprising Arellano swept their men’s and women’s senior division matches at the start of the MVPSF-Meralco Philippine Taekwondo League at the SM Bicutan Mall activity center in Parañaque last Sunday.
The reigning PTL men’s champions, the La Salle jins whipped Lyceum, 38-17, while their female counterparts polished off Rizal Technological University, 29-11, in the event organized by the Philippine Taekwondo Association and sponsored by the MVP Sports Foundation and Meralco.
Sharing the spotlight was Arellano, which got off to a shaky start in nipping University of the East, 26-25, in the men’s division before its women’s squad sent notice that it would be a team to reckon with by humbling College of St. Benilde, 20-6, in a battle of NCAA teams.
Lyceum also wielded the upset axe in the women’s division in routing defending champion University of the East, 30-10, in the competition also backed by the Philippine Olympic Committee and the Philippine Sports Commission.
Tournament director Stephen Fernandez welcomed strong turnout in the 2016 edition of the competition meant to identify future athletes who could make it to the national pool and compete in international meets.
“This is one of the showpiece tournaments of the PTA as the Philippine Taekwondo League is a proving ground for our future national athletes for overseas competition,” Fernandez, himself a former national team mainstay, said.
Similar to international play, the PTL employs the electronic scoring system using sensors located on the head gear and body armor worn by the participants, who have to hit or connect hard enough with their kicks and punches for them to score points.
Making the matches even more exciting is the “tag round,” a five-minute extension of the match after five rounds of individual clashes pitting players in the same weight divisions until the final tally is reached at the end of the period.
In the tag round, a coach can field as many substitutes during the stage, although an entry is limited to a maximum of one minute of play each before he or she is replaced by a teammate.