Pinoy pugs to reverse trend?

It’s been downhill for the Philippines in Southeast Asian (SEA) Games boxing since capturing eight gold medals at the 16th 10-nation conclave here in 1991.

The 1991 harvest was a bumper crop as pinweight Onyok Velasco, lightflyweight Elias Recaido, bantamweight Roberto Jalnaiz, featherweight Julito Lopez, lightweight Ronald Chavez, lightwelterweight Arlo Chavez, welterweight Victor Vicera, and lightheavyweight Raymundo Suico hit paydirt to mark the country’s largest gold medal haul in SEA Games history.

Then the tumble began. At the 1993 SEA Games in Singapore, Thailand wrested the overall title in boxing as the Philippines slid to second with five golds, courtesy of pinweight Onyok Velasco, flyweight Elias Recaido, bantamweight Isidro Vicera, featherweight Romeo Lavega, and welterweight Arlo Chavez.

Only Arlo Chavez struck gold for the Philippines at the 1995 meet in Chiang Mai and featherweight Larry Semillano bagged a solitary gold two years later in Jakarta. At the 1999 Brunei, pinweight Juanito Magliquian and lightwelterweight Romeo Brin took top honors but Thailand remained firmly entrenched as overall titlist with eight golds.

In a show of force, the country’s last three boxing gold medallists are back on the national team hoping to relive their glory days at the 21st SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur. Semillano, Magliquian, and Brin are once more in the hunt for gold.

Also on the team are 1994 Asian Games gold and 1995 SEA Games silver medallist Reynaldo Galido at welterweight, 2000 Sydney Olympian Arlan Lerio at bantamweight, 2001 World Cup bronze medallist Harry Tanamor at lightflyweight, and 2001 Balado Cup gold medallist Violito Payla at flyweight. Completing the cast are lightmiddleweight Junie Tizon, middleweight Maximo Tabangcora, and lightheavyweight Maraon Goles.

In 1995, Magliquian and Galido advanced to the finals but settled for silvers. Magliquian, in his first international appearance, took a standing 8-count in the second round enroute to losing to Thai Trongsakdi Kaentow on points. Galido floored Chaichoopol Chamnanmuang in the first round but still lost to the Thai. In all, Thailand captured 11 boxing gold medals in Chiang Mai.

Semillano, 24, pounded out a 22-4 win on points over Thailand’s Somchai Nakbale to win the country’s only boxing gold medal at the Jakarta Games in 1997. Tizon also saw action that year and lost a 16-2 decision to Pornchai Thongburan of Thailand in the lightmiddleweight finals. Galido dropped a 13-10 verdict to Meckson Barataman of Indonesia in the quarters to wind up without a medal.

In 1999, Magliquian and Brin were the only survivors of five Filipinos who entered the finals.

Semillano, Brin and Lerio fought at the Sydney Olympics. Lerio scored the Philippines’ only win when he stopped Uganda’s Jackson Akisu in the first round of eliminations. He lost in his next assignment to Poland’s Andrezej Rzany on a countback after an 18-all draw. Lerio was on top, 18-17, with 27 seconds left and had decked Rzany with a right straight but couldn’t pull off a second win.

Semillano was a disappointment in losing to the Ukraine’s Andriy Kotelynk who raced to a 16-1 lead and won on an automatic stoppage under the new 15-point, one-sided rule.

Brin, 27, blew a two-point edge in the third round and lost by three to Belarus’ Sergie Bukovski. The late collapse was reminiscent to his setback at the 1994 Asian Games when he led Thailand’s Chaleo Somwong by four to start the final round and still lost a 16-12 decision.

Lerio, Payla, and Tanamor represented the country at the 11th World Cup in Belfast, Ireland, last June. All three won their initial assignments. Lerio outpointed Whan Suk Jo of Korea, 13-7, before losing a 14-10 verdict to Suriel Rotas of the Dominican Republic. Payla decisioned Ravkat Eraliev of Uzbekistan, 22-13, then lost a 15-14 heartbreaker to Vardan Zakarjan of Germany.

Tanamor halted Kyung Yeil Lee of Korea, stopped Sebastian Gualthier of Canada, and lost a 33-26 decision to Marian Velicu of Romania in the semis. Velicu defaulted his final fight on doctor’s advice – Tanamor should’ve fought instead. Tanamor, a Zamboangueño, was the only Southeast Asian fighter to win a medal at the World Cup.

Last July, Magliquian was the sole Filipino to reach the finals at the 24th Kings Cup in Bangkok. He lost a 20-2 decision to Olympian Suban Pannon in the lightflyweight finals. Pannon is on the Thai team in Kuala Lumpur but won’t cross paths with Magliquian. Pannon is entered in the lightflyweight class while Magliquian is in the pinweight division.

Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) president Manny Lopez has high hopes that the country’s 11-man team will reap honors in Kuala Lumpur. He says at least nine fighters are potential gold medallists.

It’s gold or bust for the Filipino beakbusters who comprise the most star-studded cast ever assembled for the SEA Games since the Manila boom in 1991.