Jermal Woolridge claimed the silver medal at the 12th World Wushu Championships in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia yesterday.

Woolridge, competing in the Men’s 90+ kilogram division, lost the gold medal fight to Russia’s Ataev Bozigit two rounds to nil.

But the result was better than his performance last year when he grabbed the bronze.

“Jermal ‘Goofy’ Woolridge finished one better than at the last world championships and finished with the silver,” said an estactic Garon Wilkinson, president of Bermuda Sanshou Association (BSA).

“He put up a great fight against the Russian who, in the end, was just plain strong and really good.

“The curtain closes on our most successful World Wushu Championships ever. I’m really proud of our team.”

The Russian capitalised on his strength to execute takedowns.

In the latter part of the second round, Woolridge rocked Bozigit with a punch to the head but the late flurry wasn’t enough to turn the fight around.

Woolridge had won his semi-final fight against Egypt’s Ahmed Abdelmoaz courtesy of a head kick in the second round, with Abdelmoaz being counted out.

The effort of not only Woolridge but the contingent as a whole was seen as a defining moment for all Bermudians who compete in the martial arts arena, according to Wilkinson.

“Just thinking back to our first Worlds back in 2007 when a victory was just out of the question, we’ve come so far in such a short period of time.”

Others carrying the Bermuda flag with Woolridge were Sentwali Woolridge and Khalid Pitcher, who both made it to the quarter-finals in their division. Jeron Gunness lost to the host country’s Tan Jia Guan when he was stopped in the second round.

Wilkinson also competed in Changquan on day one and Gunshu on day two, receiving scores of 7.07 and 7.23 respectively to place 60th and 53rd.