MANILA – Filipina boxer Nesthy Petecio will try to capture the Olympic gold medal when she battles hometown bet, Sena Irie, in the women’s featherweight division of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics this noon at the Kokukigan Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
The Davao City native boxer was delighted to have an opportunity to play in the finals since she looks forward to matching the feat of weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz, who delivered the country’s first-ever Olympic gold medal last week.
“I am so happy to reach the gold medal round because this is not just for me, but also for my family and for the entire nation who have supported me all the way,” the Filipino slugger said.
Petecio had faced Irie thrice, with the Japanese winning twice, including a split-decision triumph at the Asia and Oceania Olympic Boxing Qualifiers in Jordan in March 2020.
Petecio entered the gold medal round after a 4-1 split decision victory over Irma Testa of Italy, while Irie posted a 3-2 split win against Karris Artingstall of Great Britain.
On the other hand, pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena will also shoot for a gold medal tonight as he is one of the finalists in the men’s pole vault event to be held at the Tokyo National Stadium.
Obiena, a standout from the University of Santo Tomas, admitted that he struggled during the preliminary round, where he took three tries before managing to leap over 5.75 meters.
“I was feeling very sluggish (during the preliminary round), which is strange. I didn’t feel like myself until the bar moved at 5.75 meters at the first attempt,” the 6-foot-2 Obiena shared.
“For the next round, I’ll talk to my coach about our game plan. I know he’s gonna be mad right now for what I did. I didn’t follow some of his calls, and I was struggling mentally, then I didn’t feel that confident,” he added.
Obiena’s personal best was the Philippine record of 5.87 meters he achieved at the Irena Szwewinska Memorial/Bydgoszcz Cup in Poland, but he will need to jump at least six meters in the finals to secure a medal./PN
