Napolis provides silver lining with jiu-jitsu bronze after Ramirez, Custodio heartbreaks in Asian Games

WIN. Jiu-jitsu athlete Kaila Napolis in action for the Philippines in the 2026 Asian Games.

PSC-POC Media Pool

Kaila Napolis breaks through for the Philippine jiu-jitsu team in the 2026 Asian Games with a bronze medal after world champions Annie Ramirez and Kimberly Custodio suffered surprise early exits

AT A GLANCE

• Kaila Napolis won a bronze medal in jiu-jitsu at the 2026 Asian Games, marking the Philippines' only jiu-jitsu medal in the event.
• Napolis secured her medal after defeating Mongolia's Tsagaanbileg Altangerel 2-0, following a loss in the quarterfinals.
• Her victory came after the disappointing exits of fellow competitors Annie Ramirez and Kimberly Custodio, who were expected to perform well.

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MANILA, Philippines – Kaila Napolis somehow made up for the heartbreaking defeats of world champions Annie Ramirez and Kimberly Custodio as she salvaged a jiu-jitsu bronze medal in the 2026 Asian Games.

Napolis clinched what is so far the Philippines’ only jiu-jitsu medal in the continental meet in Nagoya, Japan, after a 2-0 win over Mongolia’s Tsagaanbileg Altangerel in the battle for the women’s 52kg bronze at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall on Friday, October 2.

A Southeast Asian Games champion, Napolis crashed out of gold-medal contention after a 3-2 loss to to Mongolia’s Mongoljin Ganbaatar in the quarterfinals, but she found her way to the podium by coming out triumphant in the repechage against Singapore’s Sofia Anabel Rivas and toppling Altangerel for the bronze. 

“I really wanted to bounce back [and end] with the bronze medal. I wanna give it all. And thankfully, I pulled it off,” said Napolis in a mix of Filipino and English. 

Napolis replicated her campaign in the 2023 edition in Hangzhou, China, where she also won bronze after losing in the semifinals.

Her podium finish came after the surprise exits of Ramirez and Custodio, who were tipped as strong gold-medal contenders following their triumphs in the Ju-Jitsu International Federation World Championships in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in August.

Eyeing a second Asian Games gold after ruling the women’s 57kg class in 2023, Ramirez lost her opening match as she competed in the lighter 52kg division, falling to Thailand’s Nuchanat Singchalad in the round of 16 on Friday. 

The match ended in a scoreless tie, but Singchalad advanced by virtue of her two advantage points.

Meanwhile, Custodio — a four-time world champion in the women’s 45kg category — saw action in the heavier 48kg class, where she exited the round of 16 against UAE’s Balqees Abdulla on Thursday, October 1. 

Similar to the fate Ramirez suffered, Custodio lost via advantage. 

“We’re a bit sad, of course, for those who did not medal. But I’m still super thankful for the support,” said Napolis. – Rappler.com