Petecio, 2 others launch bid for Paris Games slots

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TOKYO Olympic silver medalist Nesthy Petecio began her campaign for another Olympic stint last night (Monday morning in Manila), vying along with two other Filipino boxers in the 1st World Olympic Boxing Qualification Tournament at the E-Work Arena in Busto, Arsizio Italy.

Petecio was scheduled to fight Serbian national team member Andjela Brankovic in the first round of the featherweight (57-kilogram) division beginning at 7 p.m. (2 p.m. in Manila), bidding to advance to the next round of the qualifying event organized by the International Olympic Committee.

The Davao del Sur native will face a Serbian southpaw who has a sparse amateur record of eight wins, one by knockout, against seven losses, which pales in comparison with the experienced Pinay boxer’s record of 69 wins (3 KOs) against 26 losses.

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Petecio needs to win five matches to reach the finals and punch a ticket to the Paris Olympics in July.

Also competing yesterday in the arena located 40.8 kilometers northwest of the Italian fashion capital of Milan was 2016 Rio Olympian and reigning Cambodia Southeast Asian Games flyweight champion Rogen Ladon, who was to face European Games bronze medalist Federico Emilio Serra of Italy in the preliminaries.

Light welterweight Riza Pasuit was scheduled to face Venezuela’s Rio Krisandy as her first-round opponent in the division where three Olympic slots are up for grabs.

The other Pinoy boxers who will compete in the tournament are Tokyo Summer Games silver medalist Carlo Paalam, Mark Ashley Fajardo, Ronald Chavez Jr., son of former national standout turned coach Ronald Sr.; and John Nobel Marvin in the men’s division, and Claudine Veloso, Aira Villegas and Hergie Bacyadan in the women’s class.

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