By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Meggie Ochoa put up a spectacular performance in the grand finals match of the women’s 48-kg jiujitsu to clinch the Philippines’ second gold medal of the Asian Games last October 5, 2023, held in Hangzhou, China.
Ochoa prevailed over Balqees Abdulla of the United Arab Emirates and won the gold medal via points advantage.
It was a tough match for Ochoa after confirming that she was ill heading into her gold medal clash against Abdulla.
Ochoa revealed that hours before the match, she was taking prescribed medicine to reduce her fever and was not in her optimum state to perform.
However, the will to win and the heart prevailed for the 33-year-old jiujitsu legend during the lengthy match against UAE’s bet.
Ochoa displayed a consistent ground control that proved to be the difference-maker in her quest to claim the country’s second gold medal.
The Filipina then burst into tears after hearing her name called as the category queen of the women’s 48-kg division.
Before reaching the finals, Ochoa had a hard journey as she faced Mongolia’s Odgerel Batbayar in the Round of 16.
Despite the tough challenge from the Mongolian and the strength she displayed, Ochoa still found a way to pull off the win via a submission.
Ochoa replicated her submission victory in the next round against Nazgul Rakhayeva of Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals then prevailed over Thailand’s Pechrada Kacie Tan in the semifinals to book a ticket to the gold medal round.
