OLYMPIC-BOUND Eumir Felix Marcial, Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas led a six-man national boxing team that left yesterday for the USA Boxing Multination Boxing Camp from April 9 to 21 at the high-altitude Colorado Springs Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado.
Back on the national team after scoring his fifth straight win as a pro in his successful comeback fight in the country against Thai Thoedsak Sinam, Marcial will be joined by 2016 Rio Olympian Rogen Ladon and former Philippine National Games standout Cristian Pitt Laurente on the men’s squad.
Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Petecio and Villegas will be joined by hard-punching middleweight boxer Hergie Bacyadan on the women’s team, according to Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines Secretary General Marcus Manalo, who also left with the team.
Australian tactician Don Abnett will lead the coaching staff composed of Ronald Chavez, Reynaldo Galido, Mitchel Martinez and Gerson Nietes Jr. as the Pinoy pugs enter the homestretch of their Olympic build-up.
Left behind is flyweight Carlo Paalam, a Tokyo Olympic silver medalist, who is recovering from a shoulder injury suffered during the First World Olympic Boxing Qualifying Tournament last month in Busto Arsizio, Italy
Manalo is confident that Paalam will be fit in time for the last Olympic qualifying meet set from May 25 to June 2 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Manalo said the high altitude at the famed US training center would serve the boxers, along with other Olympic hopefuls from other nations, well as they brace for the Bangkok competition, adding Ladon, Laurente, who also had pro experience, and Bacyadan will compete in a tournament from April 14 to 20.
The Philippines is hoping to duplicate, if not surpass, the country’s most successful Olympic boxing campaign in the Japanese capital four years ago where four Pinoy pugs, including Irish Magno, returned home with a silver medal each from Paalam and Petecio and a bronze from Marcial.
On the eve of their departure, Petecio said her hunger for gold in Paris is even keener, especially now that Tokyo Olympic women’s featherweight gold medalist Sena Irie has retired.
