Phnom Penh – As part of the Embassy’s participation in the National Commission for Culture and the Arts’ Padayon: Paglilikha sa Panahon ng Pandemya program, the Philippine Arnis Academy in Cambodia (PAAC) launched the first Arnis Online and Physical Class on 26 September 2020 in Lyla Sports Center in Phnom Penh. Filipino Martial Arts (FMA), also known as arnis, eskrima, or kali, is the national sports and martial arts of the Philippines.
In her opening remarks, the Embassy’s Chargé d’Affaires, a.i., Ms. Myca Magnolia M. Fischer thanked Mr. Manolito Borja, president of PAAC, and other PAAC officers in partnering with the embassy in the conduct of this training. She added, “Tutoo na ang pandemyang ito ay nagdulot, at nagdudulot, ng hirap at pighati. Ngunit ito rin ay pagkakataon nating ipakita ang diwa ng bayanihan at tiwala sa Maykapal. Moreover, we hope that through this training, you are able to reconnect with and take pride in your Filipino heritage. By learning arnis, the national sport and martial arts of the Philippines, you are continuing the legacy of our forefathers who used the same fighting techniques to bring down foreign invaders. Like fireflies, we shine brightest in the dark, but assured that we find rest when morning comes. May the eight hours of arnis training give you strength and fortitude, not only to survive, but also to thrive, during this pandemic. Mabuhay tayong lahat! Padayon, Pinoy!:
The short formal program was followed immediately by the beginners’ class with ten (10) participants in attendance. The intermediate class was attended by twenty two (22) participants.
The classes are offered free of charge and conducted, via Zoom, by Coach Ronald Farol. An award-winning coach in the Philippines, Coach Ronald was also the coach of the Cambodian national arnis team, which garnered Cambodia’s first gold medal during the Southeast Asian Games in Manila last year.
The beginners’ class started with warm-up exercises, salute and commands, grip holds, stances, strikes, and cool down exercise, while the intermediate class consisted of stick exercises, advance strikes, blockings, counterstrikes with multiple strikes, tapi-tapi, disarming, basic knife strikes, sinawali (double sticks), and cool down exercise.
Open to Filipinos and non-Filipinos, the succeeding seven (7) classes will be held every Saturday morning of October 2020 until the second week of November 2020 at the Multi-purpose Hall of the Philippine Embassy, No. 182 Norodom Blvd., Phnom Penh. Those interested to attend the classes may email Mr Manolito Borja at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
