Sanya, China, April 23, 2026: Alex Enriquez brought glory to the Philippines by winning jiu jitsu gold at the 6th Asian Beach Games on Thursday.
Enriquez, 27, came through four gruelling bouts in the women’s -63kg category to take her place on the top of the podium at the Sanya Bay Yuhai Club Venue Cluster.
“It is a huge honour for me to be here in my first Asian Beach Games,” Enriquez said in the press conference.
“I hope my performance was entertaining and inspiring for the youth here to follow their dreams and see how far it takes you.”
Born in the Philippines, Enriquez moved to the United States when she was “five or six” and has lived in Georgia since then. She took up jiu jitsu aged 11 and has never looked back.
“This sport has brought me such amazing things and, by representing the Philippines, has given me the chance to go back to my roots,” she added.
“I had four matches today and every one of them was tough. I have done as much as I can regarding preparation, training and nutrition.”
Enriquez, a former jiu jitsu world champion, defeated China’s Xu Xintong by submission in the round of 16 and repeated the treatment in her quarter-final match against Thailand’s Orapa Senatham.
In the semi-final, Enriquez beat Shamma Al Kalbani of the powerful UAE team via advantage after a 4-4 deadlock, before overcoming Korea’s Lee Yeonji on points 5-0 in the final.
Al Kalbani (UAE) and Senatham (Thailand) won the two bronze medals on offer.