How CAR kicked its way to 4 poomsae golds in 2026 Palaro

AGUSAN DEL SUR, Philippines – The Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) was the overall champion for taekwondo in the 2025 Palarong Pambansa. 

Heading into the games’ current edition in Agusan del Sur, head coach Arnold Oglayon thought it was going to be a difficult feat to replicate. Still, he wanted his players to try their best. 

“This is Palaro. Hindi naman ito ‘yung mababang tournament, so magagaling lahat…. We just try and try kung hanggang saan ‘yung kaya namin,” he told Rappler on the sidelines of the poomsae event of the 66th Palarong Pambansa on Wednesday, May 27. 

(This is Palaro. It’s not a small tournament, so everyone is good…. We just try and try to the best of our abilities.)

In poomsae alone, though, CAR bagged four gold medals this year under his guidance. Oglayon was a Palaro athlete himself, and even gave the region its first-ever gold medal in any sport — so the high-stakes atmosphere in the annual event is something he’s entirely familiar with.

“Shinishare ko na ‘Ito yung preparation mo.’ Pati ‘pag noong nagko-coach ako, siyempre alam ko ‘yung pakiramdam. So kailangan mo rin ibigay ‘yung situation sa loob ng court. Iba kasi ‘yung training lang, iba rin ‘yung nasa court ka na talaga,” Oglayon shared. 

(I share with my athletes how their preparation should be. Even when I’m coaching, I know the feeling. So you really have to give them the situation on the court. It’s one thing to just train, and another to be on the actual court.)

“I’m happy with the performance of my players because we really prepared. And how we train in the gym is what we do on the actual court,” he added. 

Uphill battle

But the path to gold was an uphill battle for Ryan Nabejet, Ross Damian, and Johann Ventura of the secondary boys’ team. Nabejet had represented CAR in the same category last year where they settled for a fourth-place finish — with Damian and Ventura suiting up to join him for the first time this year. 

The three jins had big expectations to fulfill. 

“It’s a really good feeling that we got to bounce back for our team and for our CAR, and the fourth-place finish didn’t happen again,” Nabejet, a University of Baguio student, said in a mix of English and Filipino. 

Fourteen-year-old Joniya Ysabelle Obiacoro had also prepared tirelessly for this year’s Palaro. She’s now in her third year in the annual sporting event, and even ranked first in the team category in the 2023 edition in Marikina. 

In the lead-up to the 2026 Palaro, Obiacoro would train every day in Baguio, and when they traveled to Agusan del Sur days before the taekwondo competition commenced, her training increased to twice a day. 

Even then, it had come as a welcome surprise when she eventually pulled off a gold medal finish in the secondary girls’ individual category. 

“I feel like shocked pa rin po ako,” Obiacoro told Rappler moments after her winning performance. “Kasi hindi naman po super high ang expectations ko pero confident naman din po ako. I’m so grateful po for everything. I’m so grateful po for my coaches, my parents and relatives, and my teammates din po.” 

(I feel like I’m still shocked because my expectations weren’t super high. But I was still confident. I’m so grateful for everything. I’m so grateful for my coaches, my parents and relatives, and my teammates.) 

CAR also won gold in the team elementary girls event courtesy of Frances Hollie Nabejet, Zion Ysabelle Buenviaje, and Winter Niamh Scarlet Abuan. The region then got its fourth poomsae gold medal courtesy of Buenviaje in the elementary girls’ freestyle category. 

With meticulous coaching at the hands of Oglayon coupled with these young athletes’ talent to rise to the top, CAR’s dream of bagging another Palaro overall championship in taekwondo seems to be on track. – Rappler.com

The finals of the kyorugi (sparring) portion of the 2026 Palarong Pambansa taekwondo competition will take place on May 29 and 30.