When University of the East is mentioned in the UAAP, it is often synonymous with its dominance in fencing. With nine event sweeps in the sport over the past 10 seasons, it’s easy to see why.
This season, however, the Recto-based institution achieved a historic first – three championships out of four in UAAP judo.
The Lady Warriors secured their fourth straight crown in the women’s division, while the Junior Warriors clinched their first-ever golden double with back-to-back girls’ titles and a maiden boys’ championship.
For head coach Rodimple Rodriguez, the key to this success lies in the culture they have built within the team.
He highlighted his seniors on the women’s side, who chose to stay for one more year to give UE another shot at glory. He recalled, “Actually ‘yung iba sa kanila sinabihan ko na huwag nang maglaro kasi marami naman kaming bagong players, pero sabi nila, ‘Hindi coach, gusto pa naming mag-give back sa UE.’
“Siguro ‘yun ‘yung maganda sa UE na na-instill namin sa kanila ‘yung love for the team and love for the school. Kumbaga, wala na silang dapat patunayan ‘eh. Most of them national team players, nagco-compete na sa international tournaments, pero dahil mahal nila ‘yung UE, hindi nila maiwan talaga.”
One of those seniors was 32nd SEA Games bronze medalist and eventual women’s MVP Leah Lopez, who shared that this strong bond was the very reason she extended her playing years.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
“Kami po kasi sa UE, it’s not just a team, it’s a family. And iba po ‘yung culture na nabuo namin sa UE, ando’n po takaga ‘yung respect and discipline. And also talagang ‘pag sa training po, support system po namin ang isa’t isa,” said the 24-year-old standout.
“Sobrang thankful po kami kila coach Rod and ma’am Dianne for being our second parents po na talagang ang dami nilang ininstill sa ‘min na magagandang characteristics na hindi lang kami nag-grow sa judo, but our life after judo.”
With a treble under their belt, Rodriguez now hopes to replicate the success of coach Amatov Canlas and the fencing team by achieving an event sweep in the future.
However, that remains a dream, as the men’s team’s return to the UAAP is still under discussion. This uncertainty led to the enrollment of UAAP Season 86 gold medalists Rupert Fernandez at the University of the Philippines, and Rodriguez’s son, Eric Kaede, at Ateneo de Manila University.
“Actually, napag-uusapan na rin po ‘yung men’s program, pero medyo sa ngayon po medyo malabo pa, pero hopefully in a few years kasi nagre-rebuild pa lang rin ‘tong boys’ team eh. Ngayon pa lang rin ‘to sumali talaga, so hopefully in the near future, kasi nanghihinayang ako sa mga boys ko na ga-graduate eh. Tsaka marami rin pong nagtatanong from the outside na ‘yung men’s team ng UE, inaantay nila, nasasayang po ‘yung mga lumalapit,” Rodriguez shared.
For now, the judokas from UE will buckle down to work once the holidays are over, as they attempt to defend their titles in the coming seasons and look forward to a new era where they can truly say they dominated the mats.
