NESTHY PETECIO and Carlo Paalam hurdled their opponents with relative ease but not Irish Magno in a one-day tournament serving as part of the Olympic-bound Filipino boxers’ training program in Thailand over the weekend.
Petecio knocked down Thai Porntip Buapa twice in securing the women’s featherweight victory, while Paalam defeated another local bet, Wuttichai Yurachai, in a men’s flyweight clash.
Magno, meanwhile, saw a wakeup call in her loss to Jitpong Jutamas in their women’s flyweight duel at the mini-tournament called the Thailand International Boxing Series 7 held at the Phetchbuncha Samui Stadium in Koh Samui island.
All three Olympic qualifiers fought for the first time after more than a year because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I was defeated through points, I felt there’s still a lot of things I need to improve,” the 29-year-old Magno told BusinessMirror on Monday. “In the Olympics, I expect my opponents to be more competitive than here so I will triple my effort.”
Magno and men’s featherweight Eumir Felix Marcial, who is currently training at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles, earned their tickets to Tokyo at the Olympic qualifiers in Amman, Jordan, in March 2020.
Paalam and Petecio, on the other hand, earned tickets to the Olympics by virtue of their lofty positions in the world rankings.
“My coaches said it’s a step-by-step process. I need to study everything here. I am hoping to bounce back on Sunday in the next box-off,” said Magno, who beat Jutamas by split decision in the semifinals of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games in Manila but lost in the final to Vietnam’s Thi Tam Nguyen.
In the other fights that featured Filipinos, James Palicte lost to Somchay Wongsuwan in a men’s light welterweight bout and Marion Piñar bowed to Yeasungnoen Peerapat in a men’s welterweight clash. Women’s lightweight Riza Pasuit and featherweight Aira Villegas lost to Sudapon Seesondee and Preedakamon Tintabthai, respectively.
The Olympics are under four months away from July 23 to August 8.