Philippine jiu-jitsu star Annie Ramirez earns her third Asian Beach Games gold medal a decade after her last – proof of her enduring dominance on the international scene.
MANILA, Philippines – Annie Ramirez’s Asian Beach Games only shows her continued dominance.
The Filipino jiu-jitsu star grabbed his first two intercontinental gold medals at the Phuket, Thailand, 2014 and Danang, Vietnam 2016 editions, then won his third a decade later at the return of the Asian Beach Games in 2026 in Sanya, China.
As a woman in her mid-30s, Ramirez admits a lot has changed, especially in her body, but her steady work behind the scenes has kept her at the top of her game.
“It’s my consistency in training,” Ramirez told Rappler when asked about how he stays in top form. “Even if you’re not feeling well, you’re still training and showing up on the mats. You’re not only working on your physical ability, but your mind as well.”
“The mental game for me, that’s the biggest thing.”
Now 35 years old, Ramirez has maintained his work ethic, making it a point to delay training sessions with his club or national team.
“I’m not young, so I’ve learned to train mentally. I still train hard, but in a smarter way. You need to listen to your body if you need to rest. Before, I (could) go hard for a week, but now, I set aside time to rest,” he said.
“Your training must be meaningful.”
The truth of sports
Ramirez reached the pinnacle of the sport when she finally became a world champion, winning not just one but two gold medals at the International Jiu-Jitsu Federation World Championships in Thailand last November when she dominated the women’s -57kg gi and no-gi division.
The two world titles now serve as the crowning jewel of Ramirez’s prized collection that includes gold medals from the Asian Games, the Asian Indoor and Martian Games, and the Southeast Asian Games.
But it didn’t take long for Ramirez to see himself brought back to earth.
Eyeing a fourth consecutive gold medal at the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand in December, Ramirez suffered what she considers one of the toughest losses of her career when she advanced to Malaysia’s Joelle Wong Ai in the semifinals.
It was the first time in Ramirez’s career that he was put to sleep when Wong Ai finished off a cross from behind.
With the rules stating that those who have fainted are no longer allowed to participate in the next round, Ramirez was denied the bronze medal and went home empty-handed.
For Ramirez, the loss overshadowed the reality of sports.
“Even Superman has kryptonite. And that’s already Superman. I’m not from another planet,” quipped Ramirez. “We try our best to produce good results, but we don’t have control over everything. That’s the essence of being an athlete.”
“When you compete, you have to make mistakes. My opponent took advantage of that. He saw an opportunity, and he didn’t let it go.”
Ripe for redemption
Although the defeat was disappointing, it helped Ramirez to have an assistant coach in the Philippine martial arts, John Baylon, who helped him move forward.
Baylon, 60, won an unprecedented nine SEA Games gold medals and saw action in two Olympics as a judoka before switching to jiu-jitsu.
“Coach John gave a lot of words of wisdom. He went through everything I’m going through now,” said Ramirez.
“I tell myself that I can do it because there is someone who really believes in me.”
Still, there were days when doubts arose in the run-up to the Asian Beach Games in April.
“Before we left, there was a night I couldn’t sleep because I remembered what happened in the SEA Games. It came to me suddenly. You can’t avoid being hurt by a difficult loss,” said Ramirez.
Ramirez, however, believed in his hard work as he redeemed himself from the SEA Games disaster.
She started her Asian Beach Games campaign by submitting China’s Zhang Mengqi in the round of 16, submitted Pakistan’s Ambreen Tariq in the quarterfinals, defeated Mongolia’s Shurentsetseg Enkhmunkh on points in the semifinals, then defeated Emily Thomas comfortably in the all-Filipino final.
“I used my experience in the SEA Games as fuel. I was more calm,” said Ramirez. “I was able to analyze the situation. I was not in a hurry.”
“You know yourself that you gave everything during the preparation. I think that has been my edge.”
Ramirez isn’t stopping anytime soon.
He is set to compete in the Asian Championships in Kazakhstan in July, the Asian Games in Japan in September, the World Championships in Italy in October, and the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Saudi Arabia in December – events he also wants to dominate.
“My goal is to get gold. Nothing is impossible, as long as you prepare,” said Ramirez. – Rappler.com
