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Early victory Kaila Napolis (in red belt) pins Cambodia’s Jessa Khan in the jiu-jitsu -52 kg during the 32nd Southeast Asian Games at Chroy Changvar Hall B in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on Thursday, May 4, 2023. PHOTO BY RIO DELUVIO
By Niel Victor C. Masoy
May 5, 2023 210
(UPDATE) THE Philippines bagged two gold medals on Thursday in events that were already under way a day before the 32nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, officially open.
Jiu-jitsu athlete Kaila Napolis had the distinction of being the Philippines' first gold medallist in this year's Games.
The 25-year-old Napolis dominated Jessa Khan of host Cambodia 2-0 in the women's 49kg final held at the Chroy Changvar Convention Center.
It was sweet revenge for Napolis who lost to Khan in the 2019 World Martial Arts Mastership Games in Chungju, South Korea.
Napolis started her quest for the gold with a triangle armbar submission victory against Singaporean May Yong in the first round.
She scored a 3-0 win over Thai Nuchanat Singchalad in the second round before scoring a kimura submission victory against Vietnamese Thi Huyen in the third round.
Huyen suffered an elbow injury after refusing to immediately tap out amid the Filipino's intense submission attack. Huyen eventually tapped out at the 2:31 mark.
In the final, Napolis found herself in a losing position as Khan pinned her down for the most of the 5-minute bout.
But the Filipina recovered in time to pull off the win.
