SEAG: OVERALL TITLE TARGET NG PINOY BOXERS

MALAKI ang tsansa ng Filipinas na makopo ang overall championship ng 30th Southeast Asian Games boxing competitions, ngunit ayaw ni ABAP secretary-general Ed Picson na lubusang magkumpiyansa.

“We’re in a very good place, what with the hometown crowd behind us and our boxers peaking just in time,” wika ni Picson.

“Lahat naman ng boxers natin capable of winning, but a lot of factors have to be considered,” dagdag ng boxing official, na ibinasura ang paniniwala na tatargetin ng koponan ang sweep sa 13 gold medals na nakataya.

“I won’t stick my neck out and say anything close to that (sweep). You have to consider many things, like the luck of the draw or kapag natapat ka sa mga mabibigat,” ani Picson.

Ang boxing team ay pangungunahan nina World Championship at two-time SEA Games gold medalist Eumir Felix Marcial (middleweight, 75 kg), na kinuha ang second ranking sa mundo sa Championships na idinaos sa katerinburg, Russia noong mid-September; at John Tupas-Marvin (light heavyweight, 81 kg), na magtatangka sa kanyang ikalawang sunod na SEA Games gold.

Kabilang din sa koponan sina Carlo Paalam (light flyweight, 49 kg), Rogen Ladon (flyweight, 52 kg), Ian Clark Bautista (bantamweight, 56 kg) , Charly Suarez (lightweight, 60 kg), James Palicte (light welterweight, 64 kg) at Joel Bacho (welterweight, 69 kg).

Sa distaff side ay magiging kinatawan ng bansa sina  Josie Gabuco (light flyweight, 48 kg), Irish Magno (flyweight, 48 kg), Aira Villegas (bantamweight, 54 kg), Nesthy Petecio (featherweight, 57 kg) at  Risa Pasuit (lightweight, 60 kg).

Bagama’t ayaw ni Picson na lubusang magkumpiyansa, ipinagmamalaki niya ang SEAG roster ng ABAP, na ang mga miyembro ay magsasagawa ng final training camp sa ­unang linggo ng ­Nobyembre sa Australia.

Matapos ang camp, umaasa si Picson na ang kanyang koponan ay magiging handang-handa na para sa bo­xing competitions na magsisimula sa ­Disyembre 4 sa Philippine International Convention Center Forum san Manila.

“Our boxers are always a source of gold medals in the Philippines’ SEA Games campaigns,” wika ni Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman William ‘Butch’ Ramirez.

“We are banking on our pugilists once again to help lift our bid in the 30th edition of the Games. The PSC has always been supportive not only of our boxers but the rest of the national athletes. The agency did its best to provide them support for these Games and the next competitions they are scheduled to take part in,” dagdag ni Ramirez.

Ang mga Pinoy boxer ay nagwagi ng 2 gold, 1 silver at 2 bronze medals bilang runner-up sa Thailand (2-3-1) sa 2017 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games.

“The Thais have always been a threat. They are our toughest competition. Fact is, marami silang tinanggal sa team nila. Majority of their boxers are relatively newbies, those who have been fighting for two to three years. But this (fielding a young team) could go either way,” ani Picson.