Keeping up with the Athletes is a feature series that profiles young athletes whose formative years in their respective sports are challenged by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
These formative years are arguably one of the most important periods in the lives of these young athletes as it prepares them for the collegiate level and possibly even beyond it. The stories of these players will provide a glimpse into how they cope and train in the new normal.
Online and onward
Already an accomplished athlete at a young age, Filipino-Japanese karateka Sakura Alforte currently ranks 4th in the world for kata in the junior female category.
Although the lockdown due to the pandemic has kept her within the confines of her home, Alforte has been making the most of her spare time by training.
Alforte resides in Japan and looks forward to starting her freshman year at Tokyo’s Waseda University.
She hopes to resume her regular training at the university’s karate club, which is among the oldest in the country’s capital.
While the Philippines and Japan vary in COVID-19 response mechanisms, the international landscape of karate is unlikely to return to normal anytime soon.
“Even as everything settles back down, I think that online training and virtual tournaments will still be a big part of karate in the future,” shared Alforte.
Most karatekas have been holding up through online training sessions, seminars, and tournaments.
With both regional and international federations migrating to the online scape, this appears to be the new normal for the sport.
So Alforte, too, has been actively engaging in these online events.
Last July, she was awarded 1st place at the 2nd JKFan Cup Web 1 Challenge after dominating the Girls’ 16-17 Elite Kata division.
Keeping balanced
Having learned from different coaches over the years, Alforte managed to form her own routine for self-practice. This curated regimen, she shared, incorporates the various karate styles she hopes to develop.
“I find it important to have a fulfilling and productive practice in a short amount of time to avoid excess fatigue in my body. This allows me to improve a lot in a short period of time,” says Alforte.
At home, Alforte has also well-adjusted to her own training regimen. She began learning the martial art in Grade 2, owing her start to her elementary school’s karate club.
Years after successfully honing her time-management skills as a student-athlete, the karateka now possesses enough discipline necessary to improve even without a coach present.
“I aimed to achieve excellence in both academics and athletics, so sacrificing [either] was not an option,” she said.
Achieving this balance has also allowed Alforte to quickly adjust to a home training setup.
Crushing blows
In spite of Alforte’s persistence to remain on the path of progress, the pandemic dealt notable blows that have set her back quite a bit.
“Training with others definitely has its upsides, such as a motivation to push yourself harder,” shared Alforte.
Despite being a kata player, thus doing away with the contact aspect of the sport, the limitations of the remote training setup are felt by the athlete.
Certain techniques can only be improved to the fullest through partner or group drills, which is evidently absent from this arrangement, together with the vital feedback from coaches and peers.
Alforte’s run at the tournament circuit was also halted by the slew of canceled events.
Her most glaring loss was her invitation to go up against members of Japan’s national karate team.
Originally scheduled for April of this year, the championship was eventually canceled.
Despite the drastic changes in the sport, Alforte’s enthusiasm for the martial art runs strong. She only hopes that this fervor is likewise sustained by her peers and others in the world of karate.
“There surely will be extra precautions placed to prevent the 3Cs (crowded, close-contact, and confined places) in physical tournaments and limit spectators,” she said.
“But it should still have the same air of excitement and tension as it used to have.” – Kiara Gorrospe/ Rappler.com
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