Filipino boxers snatch four golds in Boxam Elite tourney in Spain

GRADUALLY, Nesthy Petecio and the magnificent Filipino boxers are getting into that form that they hope would snatch them a place in the Paris Olympics set this July.

And Saturday in La Nucia in Alicante, Spain was a vivid reflection of where Ms. Petecio and the Philippine team are now in terms of their Olympic preparation as they scooped up four gold medals in the Boxam Elite Tournament.

One of those glittering mints was delivered by Ms. Petecio, a Tokyo Games silver winner, herself in the women’s 57-kilogram division where she overwhelmed Tokyo bronze medalist and fellow world champion Huang Hsiao-Wen of Chinese Taipei, 4-1.

The other three were provided for by 2016 Olympian Rogen Ladon (51kg), Aira Villegas (women’s 50kg) and a ferocious Hergie Bacyadan (women’s 75kg).

Mr. Ladon literally didn’t break a sweat in capturing the mint as he won via default over Hungarian Istvan Szaka. Ms. Villegas, for her part, fended off a dangerous Kyzaibay Nazym of Kazakhstan in escaping with a heart-pounding 3-2 decision while Ms. Bacyadan, a world champion last year in another martial arts sport vovinam, overpowered Yerzhan Gulsaya of Kazakhstan.

The fantastic four are hoping their recent feats could lead them to a bigger stage — the Paris Games — where they hope to join early entrant Eumir Felix Marcial.

And they will have two chances to make it that far — one in Busto Arsizio, Italy from Feb. 29 to March 12 and the other in Bangkok, Thailand from May 23 to June 3.

“Four gold medals,” said a jubilant Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines Secretary-General Marcus Manalo in his social media post before thanking the MVP Sports Foundation and the Philippine Sports Commission for bankrolling the trip.

“This is not yet the Olympic qualifiers but at least we know we’re taking good steps into that direction,” he added. — Joey Villar