Two-time world billiards champion Rubilen Amit is focused on taking care of her mental wellness amid the COVID-19 pandemic before kicking off "serious training" next month.
Amit said she is consistently attending Zoom sessions with Project: Steady under radio and television personality Gang Badoy, which served as a motivating factor on her journey to "self-discovery" amid these trying times.
"Malaking tulong po sa akin 'yung, especially noong start ng pandemic. Marami pong nangyari, and then tuloy-tuloy po from coping doon sa mga nangyari until now (It's a huge help for me, especially at the start of the pandemic. A lot happened and then my progress is continuous, from coping from what happened until now)," Amit said in an interview on Radyo Pilipinas' PSC Hour Friday, March 12.
It would be recalled that the pandemic took a toll on her well-being last year, admitting that she cannot train rigorously due to the closure of establishments which include billiard halls.
A close family member of Amit, which she considered a second father, also died due to COVID-19.
That said, the Southeast Asian Games multi-gold medalist is planning to begin training in April accompanied with a proper physical fitness program appropriate for billiards athletes.
Amit said the national team members are conducting self-training for now ahead of the 2021 SEA Games in Vietnam while awaiting an advisory from officials. The 39-year-old Cebuano pool champion had her pool table repaired just a few weeks ago.
"Marami pa pong panahon kasi lagi naman po tayong handa. Ang importante, we understand the concept of what you're doing for you to be able to understand 'yung adjustment. And once we go back to training, 'yung serious training talaga na pukpukan ulit, quality training hindi rin quantity (We still have a lot of time to prepare. What's important is that we understand the concept of what you're doing for you to be able to understand the adjustments. And once we go back to full-blown training, it should be quality over quantity)," said Amit.
Amit ruled the women's 9-ball singles and 9-ball doubles alongside protege and pal Chezka Centeno in the 2019 SEA Games while the latter also bagged the women's 10-ball singles.