Exactly 59 years ago, or on October 21, 1964, Anthony Villanueva, a Filipino amateur boxer, won the silver medal after competing in the featherweight division (57 kilograms) of the 1964 Olympics that was held held in Tokyo, Japan.
Villanueva was the first Filipino to win an Olympic silver medal. He barely missed the gold in this Olympics after losing a controversial final gold medal match against Stanislav Stepashkin of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
Acknowledged as one of the greatest Filipino athletes, he is the son of Jose Villanueva, a bronze medalist in the bantamweight division (54 kilograms) of the boxing competitions at the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, California, USA.
Likewise, the two Villanuevas hold the distinction of being the only father and son Olympic medalists in Philippine sports history.
Source: Philippine News Agency archives
(Filed by JR AMIGO/ai/mnm)