SOME athletes are defined by medals; others by triumphs that transcend sport. Amaya Amparo Roxas Paz-Cojuangco — “Amaya” meaning “love charm,” and “Aya,” meaning “amiable,” in Ifugao — belongs to the latter. At 40, her journey from Miriam College to the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games reflects resilience, faith and excellence, as well as her refusal to let pain, chronic illness or major surgery limit her life.
Miriam College nurtured Aya’s character, curiosity and quiet strength. Around 2002, while watching an Olympic archery final with her father, she began to see archery as an alternative to competitive swimming.
At the time, Aya trained with the Celebrity Killer Whales and competed in national age-group events. Realizing that catching up with more experienced swimmers could compromise her studies, she began considering another path.
After her third year at Miriam College, Aya attended summer guitar classes at the UP College of Music. A visit to the nearby Philippine Sports Commission archery range quickly drew her to the sport. Coach Jun “Mang Jun” Cortez lent her a recurve bow, taught her the basics and recognized her as a serious, fast learner. Aya soon bought an entry-level competition bow and trained after class and on weekends.
By senior year, Aya had qualified to represent the National Capital Region (NCR) at the Palarong Pambansa in Lanao. However, the Department of Education-NCR boycotted the games over security concerns and denied her request to compete at the family’s expense. Devastated, she left recurve archery.
As a UP freshman, Aya continued visiting the range and shifted to compound archery. Marlow Pedregosa, Raul Arambulo, Bubut Jimenez, Itos Carag and others welcomed her, and Pedregosa lent her a compound bow. After comparing Aya’s scores with international standards, her mother recognized her potential. Coach Choi Robin, known as “Coachie,” then trained her without pay, preparing her for international competition through intensive practice at the UP range, at home and on weekends.
Aya soon recorded notable results on the Asian circuit. Although she was eliminated in her first Olympic-round match, the teenage Filipino proved she could compete internationally. From 2005 to 2026, she joined events across Asia, Europe and the United States, earning repeated top-three finishes, including bronze and gold medals.
At the 2005 SEA Games in Subic, she won individual gold and helped the team secure another gold. Two years later, she earned two more gold medals, completing back-to-back double-gold performances.
While preparing for another SEA Games campaign in Bangkok in 2009, Typhoon Ondoy flooded the Sunrise Hill, New Manila home of Aya and her husband, Kit Cojuangco. They scampered to the roof with their 8-month-old son, Alfonso, their dog, and two household helpers before moving to a nearby unfinished house. Because Aya was breastfeeding, Alfonso remained nourished until the flood subsided and food became available the next day.
Three years after their Catholic wedding, Kit encouraged Aya to resume training. She returned to competition and began winning again while balancing elite sport with motherhood, marriage, homemaking and community responsibilities.
Aya’s medical ordeal began in 2005, when doctors removed a growth diagnosed as a dentigerous jaw cyst. When it returned in 2011, her friend and fellow archer Dr. Karl Achacoso urged further evaluation. Dr. Jing Aliling then identified it as ameloblastoma — a benign but aggressive jaw tumor that can cause disfigurement and disability if untreated.
After surgeons removed the tumor, a nerve injury caused trigeminal neuralgia and severe facial pain. For more than a year, Aya required intensive medication under pain specialists Dr. Lorina Cabaluna and Dr. Henry. Careful supervision helped her avoid dependence, although the pain continued until 2018.
In 2017, Aya underwent surgery for a myoma complicated by endometriosis and adhesions to the colon. After a decade, she became pregnant with her second son, Aleks, in 2018. Early in the pregnancy, the ameloblastoma returned, requiring another operation by Dr. Pangan and Dr. Lopa.
The tumor recurred in 2024. Repeated surgeries had left her jawbone dangerously thin, so doctors removed the growth with extreme care to avoid a fracture and possible jaw replacement. Afterward, her teeth were wired shut for three weeks, limiting her diet to liquids through a straw. Still, she endured, healed and moved forward.
Despite her suffering, Aya remained generous. While breastfeeding Aleks, she donated safely stored milk to two infants who depended on it. She and Kit are hands-on parents who value family time, participate in school activities and support their sons in academics and sports. Aya also sews, cooks and bakes, often creating costumes and school outfits for her children.
When Aleks turned 5, Kit encouraged Aya to return full-time to archery. At the Southeast Asian Games, she stepped onto the shooting line carrying years of medical hardship and determination. Her historic women’s archery silver medal — decided by only two points — was more than an athletic achievement; it showed that scars can signify survival rather than weakness.
Today, Amaya inspires people across generations. At 40, she embodies faith, courage, resilience and excellence as an athlete, wife, daughter and mother. Her family and close friends regard her achievements as heroic because she continually rises above life’s challenges.
I know because I watched her grow from infancy into the first female Filipino SEA Games silver medalist, alongside our close-knit circle of family friends. As her titos and titas, we stand proudly with her father Jaime “JP” Jr. and mother Imelda “Deda” in tribute to what she has achieved, and we continue to surround her with enduring love. (The Paz and Lesaca clans in Area 1, UP Diliman Campus, have been neighbors for 55 years).
As Dwight Eisenhower said, “There are no victories at bargain prices.”
