THE Samahang Kickboxing ng Pilipinas (SKP) is keeping the sport alive and kicking amid the Covid-19 pandemic by staging the online Kickboxing Musical Form National Championships next month.
SKP Secretary-General Atty. Wharton Chan told the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) webcast that the tournament is open to all practitioners in the 10-12, 13-15, 16-18 and 19-40 years old age groups.
“We want to give our kickboxers the chance to show their sportsmanship through showmanship during the pandemic,” said Chan, adding that there will be two categories—hard style and creative form.
Kickboxing Coach Moriel Acquisio said while both categories will be in the form of imaginary fights, the difference is that in the hard style, entries can be accompanied by their choice of music.
“We are expecting great volume. This is a rare tournament because participants can do it from their homes, their backyards or their offices, then submit their videos online or through our web site,” Chan said.
Chan said SKP President Sen. Francis Tolentino pushed for the online tournament to keep the kickboxers in competitive form even during the pandemic.
Acquisio, however, clarified during the forum presented by San Miguel Corp., Go For Gold, Milo, Amelie Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. and powered by Smart with Upstream Media as the official webcast partner, that while there is no limit to the number of attempts for each video entry, participants are not allowed to do any editing.
“If they make a mistake, they can do it again and start with a new video. But they cannot edit the videos,” said the kickboxing coach, who will handle the technical side of the tournament.
Experts will judge the entries based on the basics (stance, punches and kicks), balance (strength and focus on movements) and the degree of difficulty. Videos must be no less than one minute and no more than three minutes.