MANILA – Boxer Eumir Marcial and swimmer Kayla Sanchez saw their Paris Olympics medal hopes dashed early Wednesday (31 July 2024).
Marcial experienced one of the most significant upsets in the boxing event as the 2021 Tokyo bronze medalist lost to Olympic debutant Turabek Khabibullaev of Uzbekistan in the round of 16 at North Paris Arena.
The 20-year-old Khabibullaev surprised Marcial in the first two rounds with superior technical boxing, leading on points six minutes into the bout.
Despite Marcial’s efforts to turn the tide in Round 3, hoping for a knockout, he could not overcome Khabibullaev’s lead. Although Marcial impressed three judges in the final round, Khabibullaev secured a unanimous decision victory.
Judge Shawn Reese scored the bout 30-27, while Bachir Abbar, Holger Kussmaul, Jeffery Verhoeven, and Atarbayar Byambabayar each scored it 29-28 in favor of Khabibullaev.
Marcial, who had a first-round bye, later revealed on Facebook that he sustained an injury two weeks prior, hindering his training and affecting his mental strength and performance.
“I am devastated and cannot explain my loss,” he wrote on Facebook. “It’s a difficult place to be in; no one really prepares to lose. But as I said, there are no excuses. It has always been my dream to win the gold medal at the Olympics, not just for myself and my family, but especially for the Philippines.”
Shortly after Marcial’s bout, Sanchez also failed to advance past the semifinals in the women’s 100-meter freestyle at Paris La Defense Arena.
Sanchez finished seventh in Heat 2 of the semifinals and 15th overall, missing the top 8 cutoff with a time of 54.21 seconds. This was slightly slower than the new national record of 53.65 seconds she set in the preliminaries on Tuesday night.
World record holder Sarah Sjoestroem of Sweden leads the finalists, finishing third in Heat 2 with 52.87 seconds, behind Australia’s Mollie O’Callaghan (52.75) and China’s Yang Junxuan (52.81).
(el Amigo/mnm)
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)
MANILA — Olympics-bound Filipino boxer Eumir Marcial recently encountered legendary pugilist Manny Pacquiao, who expressed his pride in Marcial’s qualification for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Marcial took to Instagram to share that Pacquiao has plans for something significant in the Philippines soon, although specific details remain undisclosed.
In a video posted on Instagram, Pacquiao, who is rumored to be involved in the upcoming Olympic Games, showcased boxing techniques to Marcial during a conversation in Cebuano.
As the Asian Games silver medalist, Marcial has secured a spot in the Paris Olympics, potentially marking boxing’s final appearance in the event, as there is uncertainty about its inclusion in the 2028 edition in the United States.
(ai/mnm)
HANGZHOU – A strong start was not enough for Eumir Marcial to land the gold in the 19th Asian Games after losing to Tanglatihan Tuohetaerbieke of host China in Thursday night’s final at the Hangzhou gymnasium.
The 27-year-old Marcial lost by a score of 5-0 in a bout that saw both fighters receiving a standing eight-count
The match was tied going to the third and final round, which the five judges eventually awarded to the Chinese bet for the gold.
Marcial, who booked a berth in the Paris Olympics by advancing to the 80 kg finals, settled for the silver but regretted not winning a fight that he thought went his way.
“Nakakahinayang kasi nakuha ko yung first round,” said Marcial, who won the opening round after tagging the Chinese with a straight right for a standing eight count.
“Akala ko yung last round sa akin, e. Yun ang ramdam ko.”
Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Bambol Tolentino thought the same way.
“Wala tayo laban sa host. Atin yung first and third rounds, malinaw,” he said.
Tuohetaerbieke, a silver winner in the World Championship early this year, rallied back and scored on a combination that forced the referee to give Marcial a standing eight count that took the Filipino by surprise.
The final round was back-and-forth action with neither fighter backing down.
Both Marcial and the Chinese raised their hands when the bout was over.
“Pero siyempre kailangan kong i-respeto yung decision ng mga judges. Yun ang desisyon nila. Pero congratulations pa rin sa China,” said the Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist.
The silver though was an upgrade to the bronze medal Marcial bagged in the 2018 Asiad in Palembang, Indonesia as a middleweight.
Marcial also ended up as the lone medal winner out of the nine-man boxing team. (ai/mnm)
HANGZHOU – Eumir Marcial hit two birds with one stone in the 19th Asian Games on Wednesday.
The Filipino southpaw made it to the gold medal round of the men’s 80kg class after demolishing Ahmad Ghousoon of Syria and earned an outright berth in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Marcial, a bronze medalist in the Tokyo Games, dominated Ghousoon in their semifinal bout at the Hangzhou gymnasium, twice decking the Syrian in the second round, including a left jab that set him up for a smashing right hook that served as the coup de grace in the rousing victory.
The official time was 1:49 of the second round.
When everything was over, Marcial went to his corner and cried on the shoulders of coaches Ronald Chavez and Don Abnett as reality quickly set in that he was bound for another shot at the Olympics.
Boxing is among the few sports in this edition of the continental meet that serves as a qualifier for next year’s Paris Olympiad.
“Sabi ko baka hindi na para sa akin itong Olympics,” said an emotional Marcial, who initially doubted he’d be able to compete in the Olympiad again after his weight class of 75 kg had been scrapped in the Paris Games.
But upon the prodding of his family including his wife Princess, Marcial gave it one more shot, moved up in weight, and briefly set aside his pro boxing career for the Asiad.
“Sabi niya (Princess), ‘kaya mo yan, kung may pagkakataon ka gawin mo,” Marcial recalled his conversation with his wife.
Now, he’s just a win away from winning that gold.
“That’s Eumir, he’s very focused and dedicated and he has trained well not only for the Asian Games but also for his Olympic qualification,” said Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino, one of the many people Marcial thanked in his quest for another Olympic stint, along with ABAP (Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines) chairman Ricky Vargas, and boxing legend and promoter Manny Pacquiao,
Marcial vies for Philippine boxing’s first Asiad gold since 2010 as he faces Tanglatihan Tuohetaerbieke of China, a 4-1 win over Turabek Khabibullaev of Uzbekistan in the other semifinal bout.
The gold medal round is set for Thursday at 8:45 p.m. (ai/mnm)
HANGZHOU – Eumir Marcial guns for a seat in the finals and an outright berth in the Olympics when he climbs the ring Wednesday night in the semifinals of men’s boxing in the 19th Asian Games.
Marcial, 27, faces Ahmad Ghousoon of Syria in one of two semifinal bouts at 80kg set at the Hangzhou gymnasium.
A win by the Filipino pro boxer will have him advance to the gold medal round, but more importantly, secure a ticket to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Boxing is one of six sports that serve as a qualifier for the Olympics.Marcial won a bronze in the Tokyo Games while fighting as a middleweight.
Yet he appears to be settling in his new weight class at light-heavy given the outcome of his previous fights, including a second-round knockout win over Weerapon JongJoho of Thailand in Sunday’s quarterfinal.
Ghousoon, who comes from a family of boxers and served as flagbearer of Syria during the Asiad opening ceremony, fights with an aggressive stance and doesn’t know how to back down, a style which Philippine head coach Ronald Chavez finds to Marcial’s liking.
“Palusob,” was how Chavez described the 27-year-old Syrian, a 5-0 winner against Taijikistan Shabbos Negmatulloev in the quarterfinals.
By reaching the semis, Marcial is already assured of matching the same finish he had during the 2018 edition of the Asiad in Palembang, Indonesia.
But this time he wanted more, including that coveted automatic spot in the Paris Olympiad. (ai/mnm)
HANGZHOU – Eumir Marcial shrugged off some anxious moments in the opening round to score a stirring knockout of Weerapong JongJoho and claim a seat in the semifinals of the 19th Asian Games boxing competitions late Sunday night.
The 27-year-old Olympian set up his Thai opponent with a perfect right hook that put JongJoho down on the canvas to hack out the impressive win before an animated crowd at the Hangzhou gymnasium.
The end came with 14 seconds left in the second round.
Marcial is now assured of the bronze medal in the men’s 80 kg class, but has a good shot of advancing in the gold medal round should he get past Ahmad Ghousoon of Syria in Wednesday’s semifinals.
For a while, a podium finish was hanging in the air for Marcial after JongJoho tagged him with a straight right that wobbled his legs, prompting the referee to give him a standing eight count.
“Yes, nahilo ako nung tinamaan niya ako. Kasi makikita nyo naman yung size ng kalaban ko sobrang laki,” said Marcial of his 6-foot-1 Thai opponent, who beat John Marvin for the light-heavyweight gold of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia.
But having been to a lot of wars, the Olympic bronze medalist didn’t panic and kept his composure.
“Pero tinitingnan ko yung oras. Sabi ko last one minute ibubuhos ko na ito. Ayun, lumabas yung resulta,” said Marcial as he lets out a holler.
It was a perfect right hook Marcial delivered that JongJoho didn’t know what exactly hit him when he stood up as the referee guided him to his corner.
“Sabi ko makatama ka lang ng isang beses, mananalo tayo,” said head coach Ronald Chavez.
Now Ghousoon awaits Marcial in the semis set on Wednesday.
The Syrian fighter won by unanimous decision, 5-0, against Shabbos Negmatulloev of Tajikistan in the other quarterfinal match.
(ai/mnm)