Road to Olympics starts for fancied Phl pugs today

PALEMBANG – For the well-prepared boxing team, composed of six male and four female contenders, the road to London starts today when boxing competitions of the 26th Southeast Asian Games gets going at the Kampus Indoor Hall of the Sriwijaya national stadium.

Mark Anthony Barriga, the country’s first Olympic qualifier following his performance in the World Championships, takes on local boy Denisius Hitahitirun in the lightflyweight class.

It will be a make or break for Delfin Boholst, who fights opposite Thailand’s Apinchet Sanenset in the 69 kg category.

The boxing team already won a silver through the luck of the draw after Nesthy Petecio made it straight to the finals by drawing a bye in the three-woman competition in the bantamweight division.

The Philippines is fielding a 10-man team under a SEAG ruling allowing only 10 boxers per country. Sixteen gold medals are to be disputed in the boxing competitions.

Out  of this year’s competitions is Bill Vicera, whose division, the pinweight where he was champion, has been scratched by the international boxing federation (AIBA).

The Filipino boxers hope to topple many-time champion Thailand and build their confidence for the next qualifying tournaments that will stake slots in next year’s Olympics in London.

“Thailand is a tough team, and we shouldn’t underestimate the hosts, the Vietnamese and the Laotians based on their performance in 2009,” said head coach Pat Gaspi.

He said the Thais are not only toughened by their training under Cuban coaches the last 15 years. He said Thai boxers start as muay thai practitioners.

“Their boxing association invites the muay thai national champions to join the boxing pool. That’s why Thai boxers are already tough even before they are trained by the Cubans,” said Gaspi.

Even if they have been absent a year following suspension from AIBA they continued their training in Europe, Cuba and Russia, he added.

“We are not making predictions but all of them are capable of winning a gold medal,” he added. “Our target is not just the bronze or silver. Every boxer will put in his best.”

“All our boxers are ready to do battle. Gold? Hindi kami uuwing luhaan (We’ll not go home with tears in our eyes). They’ll all fight to win. That’s what they were trained to do,” said former Olympic bronze medalist Roel Velasco.

The team will compete without original members Joan Tipon, who was injured two weeks ago, and Rolando Tacuyan who suffered gastroenteritis a week before the team’s departure.