After bagging a record three golds in one day, the number one e-kata karateka James De Los Santos plucked yet another one – his 30th overall in the SportData E-Tournament World Series.
The veteran internationalist took down familiar foe Matias Moreno-Dormont of Switzerland, 24.6-24.1, in the Final of the third and last leg of the E-Champions Trophy World Series, to take this milestone title.
The results came in Friday morning.
With this narrow win, De Los Santos knows he must continue working hard to continue his streak.
“I look at it as a means to work harder. I don’t want to remain complacent. There’s always more room for improvement,” the 30-year-old shared.
The two-time ISKF World Champion scored 8.2 for his take on Unsu from three judges after canceling the highest and lowest scores for the aforementioned total. On the other hand, the Swiss got two 8’s and an 8.1 for Ohan.
“It’s the love of my sport that really keeps me going, despite some tournaments being close to each other,” De Los Santos said on what pushes him despite the hectic calendar. “No matter how tiresome it can be, as long as you really love what you’re doing, you won’t make any excuses.”
The two-time Southeast Asian Games bronze medalist earlier defeated Silvio Cerone-Biagioni of South Africa, 24-4 in Sansai against 24 of Suparinpei, in the semifinals to book his place in yet another gold medal match.
The long-time national standout also knows the value of staying in shape in response to to the rigors of competition. “I don’t only look at these tournaments for competing – I also look at them as a way of training,” he shared.
“I usually do many warm up katas before I do my take. It’s what keeps me staying fit and in shape. “
