Monsour Del Rosario message to Tokyo Olympics Jin Kurt Barbosa

by Brian Joseph N. Yalung

Filipino fighter Kurt Barbosa surprised many when he booked a slot to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the Philippines lone representative for Taekwondo. That all started with a masterful performance at the 2021 Asian Qualification Tournament in Amman, Jordan where he pulled off a thrilling win over hometown favorite, Zaid Alhalawani.

Lady luck just did not smile on Barbosa in Tokyo when he found himself getting pitted against the top-seeded fighter in the field. He faced the top-ranked Jan Jung and the odds were simply against him.

Regardless, former Olympian Monsour Del Rosario believes that Barbosa is still young and should try again to reach that Olympic medal dream.

In an interview on the Rica “Baby Dynamite” Aquino podcast, the 56-year-old points out how Barbosa defied the odds and advancing ahead of seasoned fighters such as Pauline Lopez, Arven Alcantara and Kirstie Elaine Alora.

The fact that he has only been with the Philippine team for two years and managed to make it to the Olympics is a testament that he is destined for greatness. Below is the [transcribed] message Del Rosario had for the National University standout.

“You have a lot to achieve. With what you have done in a short span of time is actually unbelievable. To make it to the Olympics and you have been only with the Philippine team for two years is really a great feat. That goes to show that you can conquer more greatness if you continue,” Del Rosario stated. “Now if you want to come back to the next Olympics, focus when you get back. Concentrate. Learn from what you have gone through. Experience will only teach you. You learn from experience.”

Del Rosario, someone who lived through a different era of TaeKwonDo competitions knows that given time, Barbosa can only get better. He just needs to integrate experience and compile all that to succeed.

“Sometimes people say you learn from books. Yeah you learn from books. But nothing will beat experience. Experience for me is the best teacher,” Del Rosario said. “Now pick up from what you learned. Add it to your knowledge and continue and hopefully you will strike that medal you have been wanting, the Philippines has been wanting to have in TaeKwonDo.”