Three (3) Japanese-Filipino members of the Philippine Team—Ms. Yuka Saso, Ms. Kiyomi Watanabe, and Ms. Junna Tsukii—won medals at the recently concluded 18th Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang, Indonesia.

In recognition of their achievements at the Asian Games and their contributions to the promotion of mutual understanding and good relations between the Philippines and Japan through sports, the three were awarded with Certificates of Commendation by His Excellency Ambassador Koji Haneda.

The certificates were presented in an awarding ceremony and victory party for the athletes hosted by Ambassador Haneda at his residence on Friday, September 14, 2018. In attendance to receive their awards were Ms. Saso and Ms. Tsukii. In separate speeches during the event, Ms. Saso vowed to make the best use of lessons learned and experience she gained at the Asian Games, while Ms. Tsukii expressed determination to keep improving and hope to win more medals for the country in upcoming international championships, especially Tokyo 2020.