2 iKalinga athletes collect silver medals in 2025 World Muay Thai Championships

Tabuk City, Kalinga – Proving once more that Kalinga Province houses many strong fighters, two of its young athletes clinched silver medals in the 6th World Muay Thai Championships held in Thailand recently.

Crismill Barcellano of Taga, Pinukpuk and Jeanne Gassingga of Pangol, Tanudan were two of the six athletes who represented the Philippines in the event which was staged on Pattaya Beach on March 10 – 17, 2025.

The World Muay Thai Championship was participated in by 21 countries and at least 500 fighters. In spite of the large volume of participants, Barcellano and Gassingga, who are both 17 years old, managed to get through the fight and bring home silver medals in the 60 kg. and 52 kg. matches, respectively.

As relayed by Coach Daniel Gumilao to GURU Press Cordillera, this is the first international competition attended by these two young athletes and that they were qualified to represent the country in the international arena after winning in the provincial and national games.

Barcellano began playing Muay Thai in 2018, while Gassingga started in 2022, Gumilao added.

Barcellano, through a Facebook post, earlier expressed that competing in the World Muay Thai is both challenging and rewarding. He thanked all the people who supported him all the way to the silver medal, writing, “your support means the world to me, and I will forever cherish the memories we've made together in Pattaya, Thailand.”