Eumir Marcial, three more boxers bag bronze ni Asian Elite Boxing

Tokyo Olympics-bound boxer Eumir Marcial and three of his fellow Filipino boxers bagged bronze medals in the Asian Elite Championships of the Asian Boxing Confederation held in Dubai.

On Friday, Marcial suffered a 5-0 defeat against Uzbekistan's Saidjamshid Jafarov in the middleweight semis.

Meanwhile, Filipino boxers Mark Durens and Junmilardo Ogayre settled for bronze in the light flyweight and bantamweight category, respectively.

On Thursday, Josie Gabuco won bronze against Uzbekistan's Gulasal Sultonalieva, 4-1.

While Marcial settled for bronze, Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines president Ricky Vargas said there is plenty of time for Marcial to prepare for a potential medal in the Tokyo Olympics.

"We are of course saddened by the loss of Eumir Marcial, but that’s boxing. Adjustments will have to be made and there is some time left. That said, I think this should be a wake up call for all concerned, not just for Marcial," Vargas said in a statement.

"We all need to be united behind our four boxers in their quest for Olympic glory. Aside from Marcial, we believe Irish Magno, Nesthy Petecio and Carlo Paalam have equal chances to perform well in Tokyo," he added.

ABAP secretary-general Ed Picson said there should be nothing to be ashamed of with the results of the tournament.

"We had mostly new guys in the lineup because our top-tier boxers are in Thailand, so four bronze in an Asian championship is nothing to be ashamed of.”

Picson is referring to Magno, Petecio, and Paalam who are training in Thailand for the Olympics.

Four of the nine Filipinos qualified for the Olympics are from boxing. Others include EJ Obiena (athletics), Carlos Yulo (gymnastics), Hidilyn Diaz (weightlifting), Cris Nievarez (rowing), and Kurt Barbosa (taekwondo).

—Justin Kenneth Carandang/JMB, GMA News