PARIS—Olympic medalists Nesthy Petecio and Eumir Marcial kick off their Paris 2024 campaigns on Tuesday (30 July 2024) aiming to surpass their previous Olympic achievements.
Petecio, the Tokyo Olympics silver medalist, faces India’s Jaismine Lamboria in the women’s 57kg Round of 32 at 5:54 p.m. (11:54 p.m. Philippine time). Lamboria, a Commonwealth Games bronze medalist, secured her Olympic spot after a series of impressive victories.
Determined to claim gold, Petecio vows to fight relentlessly until victory.
“Walang hinto, hangga’t walang ginto,” said Petecio, repeating the battle-cry she started after bagging the silver medal in Tokyo.
Marcial, the Tokyo bronze medalist, received a first-round bye before facing Uzbekistan’s Turabek Khabibullaev in the Round of 16 at 9:04 p.m. in Paris (July 31, 3:04 a.m. Philippine time).
Should he prevail, a potential quarterfinal clash with reigning Olympic champion Arlen Lopez of Cuba looms large. The Cuban, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, turned professional after his Tokyo triumph but has maintained his competitive edge.
Beyond Lopez, the road to gold is littered with formidable opponents.
Top seed Tuohetaerbieke Tanglatihan of China, who defeated Marcial at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, and the hard-hitting Ukrainian Oleksandr Khyzhniak, who narrowly edged out the Filipino in Tokyo, pose significant threats.
“Abangan na lang nila,” said Marcial when asked what kind of preparation he has done for the Olympics when spotted by Filipino sportswriters after Aira Villegas’ 5-0 triumph early Monday morning against Morocco’s Yasmine Mouttaki.
(el Amigo/mnm)
