Gabrielle Monica Bidaure brought new hopes to Philippine archery after her second-place finish in the World Archery Asia Joint Training and Asia Archery Challenge held recently in Wonju, South Korea.
Bidaure got the silver in the women’s recurve behind local bet Nam Su Hyun.
Another Korean entry, Park Eun So, finished third.
World Archery Philippines president Clint Aranas swears that even if the competition won’t have any bearing on the Olympic qualification, the exposure alone playing alongside top-caliber archers will help in the country’s buildup for the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Phnom Penh next year.
Even the quest to figure prominently in the Hangzhou Asian Games in September 2023 will help the Filipino’s preparations.
Aside from Bidaure, the Philippines also sent Pia Elizabeth Angela Bidaure, Phoebe Nicole Amistoso, Damariz Gabrielle Calera, Jason Emmanuel Faliciano and Riley Santos.
“The reason why archery is hard for us is that Korea is No. 1 in the world. China, Korea and Japan are the best (archery) countries,” Aranas said.
“Having Gabrielle on the podium is a big win for us. Getting this kind of competition will help us because these are the same teams that will play in the Asian Championships.”
This will be the national archery team’s last competition overseas for the year as it will gear up for larger meets in 2023.
The Philippines will be looking to improve on its one-gold haul in the recurve tournament in the 32nd Southeast Games and aims to go beyond the Round of 32 in the 19th Asian Games.
