Petecio shocks Chinese foe, assured of at least a bronze

MANILA, Philippines - JEJU, Island, South Korea – Nesthy Petecio has fought four matches in six days against different opponents in the AIBA Women’s World Championships here and has won them all.

Friday night, it was Lu Qiong of China who fell victim to the Davao del Sur native’s boxing ring wiles. The three judges from England, Romania and Ukraine all had it 40-36 for the Filipina, assuring Petecio of at least a bronze medal.

Her taller opponent, a  21 year-old student of Xian Sports University, was time and again frustrated by the surprise hooks and uppercuts that seemed to come out of nowhere from Petecio. The latter also switched to a southpaw stance for the second time in the tournament, further bewildering the opposition.

Team manager Karina Picson said “Nesthy is in superb condition and is grimly determined yet has kept her humorous disposition outside the ring. We are optimistic about her chances but Nesthy herself is not leaving anything to chance”

 Coaches Roel Velasco and Violito Payla are working with her to map out strategies for her semifinal bout.”

Petecio goes up next against another taller foe, Tiara Brown of the United States, on Sunday. Should she hurdle that test, she fights for the gold on Monday.

“Matagal ko nang inasam-asam ito at marami na rin akong sakripisyo. Sana magbunga kung bibigyan tayo ng swerte (I’ve longed for this for a long time and I’ve sacrificed so much. Hopefully and with some luck, everything will come to fruition),” said Petecio.

Her best finishes so far are two Southeast Asian Games silvers (Indonesia 2011 and Myanmar 2013) and a gold medal in the prestigious China Open in 2012.