MANILA – Filipino amateur boxer Eumir Felix Marcial completed a golden double in the 2020 Asia-Oceania Olympic Boxing Qualification Tournament by ruling the men’s middleweight division on Thursday in Amman, Jordan.
Marcial captured the gold medal in his division following a close 3-2 decision against Abilkham Amankul of Kazakhstan in the 75kg gold medal match at the Prince Hamzah Sports Hall.
Taking control early in the game, Marcial scored points against the Kazakhstan fighter by hitting the latter’s midrange.
At one point, the Filipino hurt Amankul with a body shot, forcing the Kazakh to bend over.
Amankul tried to rally in the final round and apparently landed a shot that decked Marcial. But the referee ruled it as a slip.
Prior to his golden finish, Marcial punched a ticket to the 2020 Summer Games by defeated Otgonbaatar Byamba-Erdene of Mongolia in the men’s middleweight quarterfinals match.
Marcial went on to advance to the gold medal round by scoring a split decision victory over India’s Ashish Kumar in the semifinals on Tuesday night.
Ilongga boxer Irish Magno joined Marcial in the Tokyo Games by winning the women’s flyweight box-off against Sumaiya Qosimova ng Tajekistan, 5-0, on Wednesday evening./PN
