So far, so good for boxers

Philippine Rower, Shooter miss targets

TOKYO – Irish Magno found her range early and connected with bombs after bombs against hapless Kenyan foe Christine Ongare for an overwhelming unanimous decision that sent her to the Round of 16 of the 32nd Olympiad boxing competition here yesterday.

Magno dominated Ongare with accurate shots from her methodical in-and-out attack, easily winning her first bout to join teammates Nesthy Petecio and Eumir Marcial in the next round.

The 29-year-old Janiuay, Iloilo native provided the show for Team Philippines as Cris Nievarez bowed out of medal contention in men’s single sculls in rowing while shooter Jayson Valdez struggled to keep pace with the world’s best in 10-meter air rifle, finishing 44th out of 47 competitors.

But even with her smashing first-round win, Magno would rather stay low-key and focus on her goal.

“Laban lang fight after fight. Focus lang, huwag muna mag-aim high,” said Magno, facing a bigger battle in her next fight against Thailand’s Jutamas Jitpong.

Magno and Jitpong know each other very well since the Philippine boxing team did its Olympic buildup in Thailand. Team Phl and Team Thai had engaged in a series of dual meets there.

The entire boxing team isn’t about to celebrate yet.

“We are happy and grateful for this good start. Nesthy and Irish showcased their good preparation, determination, and will to win. But the road is long and we all need to hope and pray for continued success,” said Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines (ABAP) president Ricky Vargas.

Petecio returns to the ring at the Kokugikan Arena today for her featherweight Round of 16 match with Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yu-ting. In the same session starting at 11 a.m., Carlo Paalam opens his campaign in the men’s flyweight versus Ireland’s Brendan Irvine.

Team Philippines figures in two other battlefronts today with weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz competing in her fourth Olympics with sights set on another podium finish and skateboarder Margielyn Didal out for a golden performance in the Olympic debut of her discipline.

Didal emerged as a golden girl in the inaugural skateboarding competitions in the 2018 Asian Games and in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.

For the second straight day, a Filipina pug made the day for Team Philippines, this time courtesy of Magno in her thorough battering of Ongare that drew a 30-27 verdict from four judges. Bulgarian judge Mariya Kavaklieva even saw it 30-26 for Magno.

“We scouted her opponent two nights ago and developed some tactics. Irish was comfortable with it,” said Don Abnett, Team Philippines’ Australian coach.

Meanwhile, Nievarez was relegated to the classifications after missing a Top Three finish in Heat 4 of the single sculls quarterfinals at the Sea Forest Waterway.

Ranged against powerhouse rowers from Germany, Brazil, Lithuania and New Zealand, Nievarez came in fifth with a clocking of 7:50.74, besting only Iraqi rower Mohammed Al Khafaji.

But for Philippine Rowing Association president Patrick Gregorio, Nievarez making the quarters in his first Olympic stint is already an achievement.

“At 21 years old, his performance is beyond expectations. It’s commendable. With better, focused training here and abroad, Cris will improve. Great potential for this young man,” said Gregorio.

Valdez was good only for a series of 101.3, 100.5, 101.6, 103.6, 103.5 and 102.1 for a total of 612.6 – way off the Top Eight who entered the final.

Chinese Yang Haoran topped them all with a Qualification Olympic Record of 632.7. The others making the final were American Lucas Kozeniesky, another US bet William Shaner, Slovakia’s Patrik Jany, Turkey’s Omer Akgun, Russia’s Vladimir Maslennikov, Hungary’s Peni Istvan and another Chinese Sheng Lihao.