MANILA – Team Philippines recorded another win in boxing in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after Irish Magno mauled Kenyan Christine Ongare via unanimous decision in the women’s flyweight division round-of-32 at Kokukigan Arena in Tokyo, Japan, on Sunday.
The Janiuay, Iloilo-native boxer exhibited great footwork and counterpunching as she dominated Ongare throughout the match. All five judges scored in favor of Magno, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27, 30-26.
The 29-year-old Magno will battle Jutamas Jitpong of Thailand in the round-of-16 on Thursday noon.
“Huwag muna tayo mag-aim high, step by step muna tayo,” said the world’s number 25 ranked women’s flyweight boxer Magno, who is the first boxer from Iloilo to punch her way to the Summer Games.
On the other hand, Magno’s teammate Nesthy Petecio also advanced to the next round in the women’s featherweight division after a unanimous decision win over Congolese fighter Sakobi Matshu in round-of-32 on Saturday.
Petecio had a slow start at the onset of the match before thrashing Matshu in the next two rounds to seize the victory. She will next battle Li Yun-Ting of Chinese-Taipei in the round-of-16 today.
Meanwhile, Filipino gymnast Carlos Edriel Yulo clinched a spot in the finals of the vault apparatus but faltered in the floor exercise.
He placed sixth overall in the vault with 17.712 points while he ended up with 13.566 points in the floor exercise, dropping him outside the top 40.
Yulo also missed the cut in the all-around finals after accumulating 79.931 total points for 47th place overall. He also registered 14.000 in rings, 13.466 in parallel bars, 12.300-point routine in the horizontal bar, and 11.833 points in the pommel horse.
Swimmer Remedy Alexis Rule fell short in the women’s 100-meter butterfly event, while taekwondo jin Kurt Barbosa sustained a 26-6 defeat at the hands of South Korean Jun Jang.
Rower Cris Nievarez also faltered in the quarterfinals round after settling for a fifth-place finish in his heat in the men’s single sculls, while shooter Jayson Valdez bowed out of the Summer Games’ 10-meter air rifle event./PN
