4 Phl pugs take shot at gold in Pres Cup

MANILA, Philippines - Ian Clark Bautista moved a win away from completing a grand debut on the international stage as he trounced Gaurav Bidhuri, 12-5, to reach the lightfly finals in the 21st President’s Cup in Jakarta Thursday.

The 16-year-old find from Negros Occidental sustained his fine form and asserted his might early against his Indian rival en route to the victory in the 49-kg semifinals.

Three other PLDT-ABAP bets gained shot at the gold medal with similar impressive wins in their respective divisions while two others settled for bronzes in another remarkable stint by the Filipinos in the tournament.

Josie Gabuco disposed of Indonesian Selly Manimbo, 22-11, in the 48-kg class while Nesthy Petecio whipped another local bet Veronica Nicolas, 23-7, in the 51kg division.

Charly Suarez, getting better by the day, fought for the third straight day and posted another convincing victory – a 15-6 rout over Yeldos Saldalin of Kazakhstan.

Nathaniel Montealto, however, fell short of his bid as he bowed to Russian Alexander Malinin, 5-8, while Analisa Cruz also lost to veteran Aya Shinmoto of Japan, 10-21.

The Cruz-Shinmoto fight was tied at 2 after the first round but the Japanese came out of the second frame leading at 7-4 to the surprise of the Phl delegation, which thought Cruz had won the round.

The Mindoro native then scrambled to get back and figured in some heated exchanges but the judges again saw the third round differently, 13-6, for the Japanese.

Montealto and Cruz settled for bronze medals.

Bautista goes for the gold against Vietnamese Nguyen Van Hai, Gabuco clashes with Gui Jing Shan of China, and Petecio collides with Le Thi Bang of Vietnam.

Suarez faces Cen Yu of China in the 60kg lightweight finals.

“We brought mostly young members of the national pool here. While the veterans are carrying the fight, the showing of our first timers, especially Bautista, is heartwarming. We have two bronze medals and four opportunities to win golds in a tough field. That situation is already better than expected, but our boxers want to win the gold,” said ABAP executive director Ed Picson.

He added: “This is a testament to the directions set by ABAP chairman Manny V. Pangilinan and our president Ricky Vargas. We strive for excellence but it entails hard work and leaving nothing to chance. That’s why we have some of the most experienced coaches, our own strength and conditioning consultant, nutritionist and sports psychologist. With ample support from PLDT, the backing of the Philippine Sports Commission and our sponsors Accel, G4S, Powerade and Clusivol, the team is armed with the proper tools for success. It’s now up to our athletes to utilize them optimally.”