Olympian Elaine Alora looks forward to life after a long and colorful taekwondo career as she formally announced her retirement from national team duties on New Year’s Eve.
The 34-year-old Phnom Penh Southeast Asian Games gold medalist in a Facebook post said that “it’s the right time to say goodbye” after 18 years of donning the tricolors.
”It’s tough, it’s hard, it’s going to be a big change for me, but a challenge and change that I look forward to my future,” the national team skipper penned.
Alora made her farewell match in September last year following a Round of 16 loss to Iran’s Anahita Tavakoli in the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
“No words can describe how grateful and blessed I am with a career greater than I could have ever imagined,” Alora, who was the country’s flag-bearer in the closing ceremonies of the 2016 Rio Olympics, said.
“I’m extremely proud of the fact that I was able to play 18 years of my life doing what I truly love to do. And I’m going to miss it. I’m going to miss everything about it,” she added.
The middleweight jin saw action in nine editions of the SEA Games starting in 2005 where she collected a total of four mints and five silver medals.
Alora earned an Olympic berth in 2016 after a silver medal finish in the Asian Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
