From Wrestling Mats to Placemats

In mid-April an envoy from the Philippines came to the USA to compete in the 19th Annual USGWA/USBWA National Wrestling Championships in American Canyon, CA. Braves wrestling coach, Jason Guiducci explained this is the first time in history wrestlers from the Philippines have come to the United States. “They are making history, trailblazing,” Guiducci said. “Wrestlers from the Philippines have gone to other nations, like Korea, Europe, Bulgaria, Vietnam, but never in the U.S.”

After a successful event at which Anthony Arcilla, Jr. and Royce Tiu of Safehouse Wrestling in Manila scored 3 gold medals and a silver medal, they spent time traveling throughout the Bay Area, including a visit to the Justin-Siena Student Residence where they socialized and dined with our residents and members of the wrestling team with Coach Guiducci. It’s worth noting that Royce Tiu's only loss was in the finals of American Folkstyle competition was to Braves wrestler Austin Smith '16. There was a great sprit of sportsmanship and camaraderie among the competitors.

Sharing a common bond of leaving home and finding their way aboard, our Filipino guests felt at home with the student residents and were take by the vast number of countries represented around the dinner table. Following dinner, Anthony Arcilla played badminton with our Justin-Siena students while Royce Tiu learned how the throw an American football for the 1st time in a game of catch.

The duo also enjoyed their visit with Justin-Siena Brave wrestler Haolin Zhang ’16, who is a native of China. They shared their experiences as competitors in what is considered to be the world's oldest sport. As the evening concluded they expressed their amazement in coming all the way to America to meet people from China, Italy, Japan, and Korea. Their initial unease of traveling to the U.S. was replaced by a feeling of complete and absolute welcome thanks to the hospitality shown by Coach Guiducci and the student and faculty residents.