Despite her insistence to finish high school at her hometown, this highly recruited towering volleyball player from Western Visayas could be on her way to transferring to a Manila-based school soon.
A source told the Buzzer Beater that the talented volleybelle was recently accompanied by her mother upon the invitation of the Manila-based school where she got a chance to join the school’s practice and watch their games live.
“Kung si volleyball player lang talaga ang masusunod, gusto niya after high school na siya lilipat sa Manila,” said a source. “As much as possible kasi gusto niya pa maglaro para sa hometown niya.”
“Pero ‘yung (Manila-based school) pursigido talaga siyang makuha kasi nakita nila ang potential ni player. Medyo diamond in a rough pa siya kaya gusto na nila makuha para maistart na ang training at maiprepare for college.”
“The feeling is mutual naman kay player at (Manila-based school). ‘Yun lang whether after college na siya lilipat doon or as soon as next school year na,” the source concluded.
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In an aim to further improve his overall skill set, Ilonggo mixed martial arts fighter Rene “The Challenger” Catalan have decided to fly away from the country to focus on his training.
Catalan, a many-time Wushu World Champion, will be spending a month in Indonesia to train with the Surabaya Jawal Time Wushu Team, a gym that is made up of the nation’s top wushu artists.
Under the tutelage of head coach Agus Suprayitno, the Ilonggo MMA’er hopes to sharpen his tools in preparation for his next match-up, which could potentially be for the ONE Championship world title.
“This is a part of my preparation for my next fight. We went to Indonesia to improve on my wushu sanda skills, and other little things that I need to develop, like the ground game,” Catalan said.
“I would also like to work on my conditioning to maximize my stamina and endurance,” added the 40-year-old MMA fighter.
Catalan is fully aware of how mixed martial arts is rapidly evolving that is why he is prompted to leave the Philippines and devote all of his attention to honing his skills elsewhere.
“I’ve been training everywhere, left and right. I know that I still have a lot to work and to improve on if I truly want to stay ahead of the game,” Catalan said. “I admit that there are still a lot of things that I need to work on – that’s why I went here to Indonesia to truly focus on it.”
“I am happy that there are people who aren’t hesitating to help out and share their knowledge in the sport. For me, they’re a blessing,” said Catalan of his Indonesian partners.
“I have always dreamt of being a World Champion and for me to get there, I have to always be ready,” he added.
Catalan moved closer to his desired title fight after an impressive first-round TKO victory over former ONE Strawweight World Champion Yoshitaka “Nobita” Naito at ONE: Reign of Valor card in Yangon, Myanmar last month./PN
