MANILA – An Ilonggo athlete snatched a silver and bronze medal in the recently held United World Wrestling Grappling World Championships Cadets & Juniors UFA 2021 in Ufa, Russia.
The 15-year-old David Zaldarriaga opened his campaign last Friday (Saturday in the Philippines) with a bronze medal finish in the under 42-kilogram division of the No-Gi (no uniform) competition.
The incoming Grade 10 student of Ateneo de Iloilo was also a silver medalist in the 39-kilogram category of the freestyle wrestling or Gi competition on Saturday evening (Sunday in the Philippines).
According to David’s father and Deftac Ribeiro Jiu-jitsu-Iloilo head Zony Zaldarriaga, participating in the tournament was challenging but worth it after winning two medals.
“Winning silver and bronze is something to be proud of. We are happy to represent our country, and we are proud to be Filipino!” Zony posted on his Facebook status on Sunday.
David, a member of the Team Iloilo Jiu-Jitsu University, affiliated with Deftac Ribeiro Jiu-jitsu-Philippines, was one of the five Filipino athletes who competed in the two-day event aside from Fierre Afan, Joaquin Antonio Marte, Lucas Aguilar, and Gabriel del Rosario.
Del Rosario got the country’s other silver in the competition, while Aguilar, Marte, and Afan settled for bronze medals in their respective events.
Overall, Team Philippines ranked third place in the competition with two silver and four bronze medals./PN
