Payla delivers lone RP gold

HELSINKI, Finland — Violito Payla collected the country’s only gold at the expense of teammate Harry Tanamor and gave Team Caltex Philippines a respectable fourth place finish among 12 countries in the 21st Gee Bee International Amateur Boxing Championships here Sunday.

Payla scored an easy win over the left-handed Tanamor, who could not land a hard punch with his left fist after a wrist injury in the semifinals a day earlier.

Boxing chief and delegation head Manny Lopez ruled out a default to prevent further injury to his wrist, saying the fight must be staged in deference to the organizer and spectators.

Tanamor, who stopped his foes inside the distance in the quarterfinals (RSC-Outclassed, 2nd) and semifinals (18-3) fought gamely through four rounds, underscoring his readiness to climb from lightflyweight to the next rung.

Payla received the Best Fight Award for his win over Tanamor in the match cheered by a hometown crowd.

The win, coming after his gold medal finish in the Chowdry Cup last month, gave Team Caltex Philippines its solitary gold following the loss of featherweight Roel Laguna to Finland’s Jussi Koivula (8-15) and lightweight Romeo Brin to Bulgaria’s Dimitar Stilianov (0-20).

Boxing secretary general Rene Fortaleza, who serves as international referee, had reservations over the scoring but Lopez, who is here to check the progress of his ward’s buildup for the forthcoming Asian Games, declined to file a protest.

The judges’ individual score sheets showed Brin landed an average of four punches per round but these were not counted. Before a punch can be registered in the computer as a point for the boxer, the rule states that "the majority of the five judges must punch the score at the same time — within one second."

Still, the team, sponsored by Caltex Philippines and supported by the Philippine Sports Commission, Pacific Heights and Revicon, finished fourth among 14 teams from 12 countries with one gold, three silver and a bronze.

The lone bronze came from lightweight Anthony Igusquiza who lost in the semifinals. Bantamweight Vincent Palicte missed the bronze, losing a winning quarterfinal match through a controversial two-point deduction and a swollen wrist.

During a prayer session after the finals, national coach Nolito "Boy" Velasco reminded the boxers that they should continue improving their skills and stamina for the Asian Games.

"These European tournaments are designed to expose you to strong competition — similar to what you will encounter in the Asiad," he said.

"You must strengthen your self-confidence here — dapat buo ang loob ninyong lalaban sa mga Thais, Koreans and Kazakhs in the Asiad."

The national boxers fly to Lithunia Tuesday to compete in the Socikas International tournament set April 10-13.