Tañamor, 24, was clearly the better fighter in his semifinal duel with PDL Bedak of Hungary but the five-man jury opted to keep a blind eye and deny the Armyman from Tubungan, Zamboanga City a slot in the finals of this 12-nation event via a highly-questionable 20-22 score.
"Parang pinigil nila ang Philippines na makaabot sa finals para siguro sa mga bata nila. Pero para sa amin, panalo ang mga boxers natin," said head coach George Caliwan.
Sydney Olympics veteran Arlan Lerio (bantamweight) and Navyman Junard Ladon (featherweight), like Tañamor among the best gold medal winners in the first Goa International Championship in India last week, Navyman Florencio Ferrer (lightwelter) and Warlito Parrinas (flyweight) were all booted out in the quarterfinals.
Lerio, the most veteran in the national team backed by Pacific Heights, Accel and the Philippine Sports Commission, also dealt Kim I-hyun of South Korea some severe punishment but lost, 15-17, in the scorecards.
"Gusto na nga naming magwala simula pa nung matalo si Ladon. Sumunod si Lerio tapos ngayon naman si Tañamor. Grabe talaga ang scoring dito.
"Pero kasama na sa laro ’yan. Sa tingin ko naman, sa ganda ng ipinakita ng mga bata, may malaking tsansa tayo sa SEA Games. Basta huwag lang maulit ito sa Vietnam,"said assistant coach Nolito "Boy" Velasco.
Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines president Manny Lopez, in a text message from Manila, said:
"We’re still very proud of you. Do not let this bad experience affect our mission to regain the boxing title in the SEA Games this year and our bid in the Asian Olympic qualifying in Palawan next year."