What started as an afternoon activity with his friends has turned into a goal of representing the Philippines at the highest level for 12-year-old Rapha Herrera.
Every kid into sports dreams of reaching the top. In the case of 12-year-old Raphael Herrera, he harbors dreams of reaching the very top.
Raphael, or Rapha, is a karateka who is slowly making a name for himself in the local karate scene. He recently won bronze in the U14 Male Kata Individual event at the 2nd AKF Asian Youth Championships and Training Camp in Hangzhou, China, and is gearing up to represent Quezon City in the Batang Pinoy Games slated to run from October 24 to November 1 in Gen. Santos City.
The funny thing is, Rapha discovered karate largely by accident. His family lives in a condominium complex in the metropolis, and when he was 10, he would often play with kids his age in the compound’s large lawn.
Then he noticed at exactly the same time, almost every day, his friends would all stop playing and leave to go somewhere else.
“He was wondering where his friends were all going up to,” his father, RR Herrera, told The GAME in an exclusive interview. “He said, ‘Why are my friends leaving?’”
It turned out, all his friends had signed up for karate classes at the condominium’s gym. Naturally, Rapha didn’t want to be left out.
“So one time, he watched. And then he said, ‘Dad, can I join the karate class?’
“I said, ‘Sure.’ I thought it was nothing.”
Rapha confirms this. “Because all of my friends are there and they’re not going to the park,” he told The GAME matter-of-factly. So Rapha joined his first karate class, and he quickly noticed something.
“Because it was his first day, some of his friends already had yellow belts,” his dad said. “So he was still wearing white.”
The color discrepancy spurred him to work doubly hard.
“He would be early for practice,” RR said. “And then he would also be the last to leave. So the white belt (class) was 3-4 p.m., yellow was 4-5. But he would stay. He would watch. He said, ‘Can I watch?’ And then he stayed.”
Eventually, their sensei, Engene Dagohoy, noticed his devotion and invited him to practice with the yellow belt class. The sensei quickly noticed that Rapha, despite being a relative novice, could hang with the more advanced kids.
After a while, Rapha approached his sensei with a request that was the first sign that he was serious about karate.
“He asked his teacher, ‘Can you make me a champion?’ So we were surprised. Because the teacher was also like, ‘Hey, did you know that your son told me that?’”
“And then, ever since then, like, after practice, he would stay. He’d be the only one left.” Itong si sensei, pag nakikita niya na gustong matuto ang bata, ginaganahan siya. So he wouldn’t charge us anymore. And then eventually, he overtook other friends.”
Sensei Engene knew he had someone special when he first saw Rapha.
“The first time he joined the karate club, I already saw the potential in him,” said the sensei. “He comes in training very early, and after training, after class, he wants to stay longer. He wants to stay because he wants to do extra.
“So, one time, I decided to teach him extra training after regular class. And then he told me, he said, ‘I really want to become a champion. I want to become a champion.’”
Karate life lessons
For better or for worse, karate training has been romanticized by TV shows like Cobra Kai, which sold the idea of the tough, no-nonsense “strike first” approach of Johnny Lawrence as opposed to the gentler, “karate is for defense” philosophy of Mr. Miyagi’s disciple Daniel LaRusso.
Reality is perhaps somewhere in between, especially when it comes to teaching kids. According to RR, Dagohoy had to make adjustments in his approach.
“When the competition started, it’s like, okay, it’s drills. Being part of the national team before, our sensei, his girlfriend told him, ‘Wait, you’re not training the national team anymore. Mga bata lang ang mga ito.’ So he had to change also the way he was teaching the class. Eventually, they’re at this level now, they’re more strict, hardcore.”
No matter how strict his sensei conducts his training, Rapha Herrera has risen to the challenge. He is now a green belt and has excelled in the two karate disciplines: the Kata and the Kumite.
For the uninitiated, Kata refers to form, while Kumite is the more popular hand-to-hand competition. Rapha has shown promise in both.
“If you look at his body, he’s built for Kumite, not for Kata,” RR explains. “Because for Kata, you need to be bulkier.
“Now, the funny thing is, even if he’s enjoying Kumite, he won nationals for Kata. And also, when he went to China for the Asian Youth Open Championship, he also won Kata. So, you can’t give that up, even if he really wants to concentrate on Kumite.”
It was actually in Kumite where Rapha’s competitive juices really got flowing. During one of his early competitions, his opponents would thoroughly beat him.
“Nabugbog yan before,” RR recalls. “And he would cry. He would run away from the opponent, as in nasisipa talaga siya. As parents masakit makita yun.
“Pero gusto niya eh. And then, pag-uwi namin, iiyak siya. Then he said, ‘I need to train more. ‘Dad, I want one-on-one with Sensei.’ So, nung nag one-on-one, that’s when he started building the confidence. That’s when he started winning also.
“Hindi kasi kami naniniwala na, you’re born with it. But it’s really training. So every time he loses, we always tell him, mas nag-train yung kabila. So, I think it’s that mentality. He trains and trains until he gets it. Of course, obviously, he’s very dedicated. He has good work ethic.”
Olympic dreams
Rapha’s experience in China was enriching. It also served as an indicator of where he stands as he pursues his karate dreams. In addition to winning a bronze in the Kata competition, Rapha performed very well in his lone Kumite match and surprised his dad with his sense of patriotism.
“For Kumite, nag-tie. First 30 seconds, una siya 6 points. Race to 8 yun, he could have won. Nag-tie after 1 minute 30. But, first point advantage, the opponent. So, we lost. Umiyak siya.
“I said, ‘Raphael, it’s okay. You’re bringing home a medal.’ He said, ‘I failed my country.’ So, I was surprised. Dream niya is to wear the flag. To him, it was a responsibility. Parang sa kanya, sayang.”
The ultimate goal now for Rapha Herrera is to wear the Philippine flag at the highest level of competition…assuming karate makes a return to the Olympics.
“I was lucky enough to talk to the chairman of Karate Pilipinas,” RR said. ‘And they’re working on bringing back karate to the Olympics. He said it’s all about money.”
The sport needs a sponsor, the way golf’s Olympic bid was funded by Rolex. It’s already too late for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, so they’re aiming for Brisbane in 2032.
By that time, Rapha will be 19 and already battle-tested.
“But that’s the thing,” RR said. “To get into the Olympics, kailangan nasa top 30 siya. So, we need to keep on competing because he needs his ranking to be in the top 30.”
At this point, Rapha still doesn’t need to — and doesn’t want to — pick a lane and concentrate on either Kumite or Kata. But eventually he will need to if he wants to be a national athlete at the senior level.
“It’s hard for him to decide, but right now, I encourage him to practice both, Kata and Kumite,” says Dagohoy. “Right now, he’s a bronze medalist in the Asian Championships in Kata and also a national champion in kata. But we are working on his Kumite. His Kumite is improving.
“I want him to play both, Kata and Kumite. And maybe in the future, when he turns 18, we will decide. Tinitignan namin ang improvements niya.”
Being a former national athlete and Southeast Asian Games medalist in karate, Dagohoy knows what it takes to make it to the top level.
“The national team, that’s our target in the future. In the national team, you need to choose one. It’s hard because you really need to focus and give 100% in Kata or in Kumite.”
If you ask RR, he’d prefer that his son choose form over combat. But he also acknowledges the influence that Engene has on Rapha.
“Sensei is a Kumite player,” he says. “Sabi ko, ‘Anak, puwede kang mag-concentrate sa Kata. Doon ka nagkaka-medal.’ And, we don’t want to see him get hurt. But, he’s like, idol niya (si Sensei). So, he doesn’t want to give that up.
“Actually, he really wants Kumite. His body is built for Kumite. He’s fast. He’s thin. He’s agile. But, you know. Doon siya nagme-medal sa Kata.”
The Herrera family has around five more years to figure this out. Not that they’re sweating it.
“As parents also, of course, we want to see our kids succeed. We’re in this because of him. Anytime he tells us, ‘I don’t want anymore,’ then we have to stop. Again, for us, it was play at first. And he was the one who kind of gave us a signal. ‘I’m really into this.’ So, we’re taking the cue from him.”
And what cue would that be, Rapha?
“To get gold in the Olympics.”
Images from Myla Miranda