It’s another sure medal for Team Philippines at Paris 2024 after Aira Villegas boxed her way into semifinals in dramatic fashion.
The Philippine boxing delegation at the Paris 2024 Olympics may be down to two, but at least one of them is now assured of a medal after light-flyweight Aira Villegas squeaked past hometown fighter Wassila Lkhadiri in their women’s 50kg division quarterfinal clash at the Paris North Arena.
The bout was as close as any and truly could have gone either way, but in the end, it was Villegas’ hand that was raised to the tune of a 3-2 split decision with the scorecards reading 29-28 three times for Villegas and 30-27 and 29-28 for Lkhadiri.
Villegas’ quick, rapid-fire combinations gave her a 3-2 edge after the first round before Lkhadiri, with the crowd egging her on, leveled matters in the second round. In the third, there was very little separating both fighters, and even though Lkhadiri actually got the nod of three of the judges, the two who scored it for Villegas were the ones that mattered in the overall scorecards.
The win assures Villegas, a first-timer in the Olympics but who has established herself as one of the country’s best boxers, of at least a bronze medal. She will aim for a seat in the final on early Wednesday morning against Buse Naz Cakiroglu of Turkey.
It also helped erase the sting of Carlo Paalam’s earlier split decision defeat to Charlie Senior that denied him of a similar spot in the medal rounds. Veteran Nesthy Petecio, the only other Filipino boxer still in contention, tries to secure a podium finish on Sunday night.
Banner image from AFP.
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