NESTHY Petecio moved closer to gaining a berth in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics following a smashing debut in the Asia-Oceania Boxing Qualification Tournament Wednesday in Amman, Jordan.
The current world women’s featherweight champion scored a 5-0 shutout of Sri Lankan Krismi Lankapuravalage in their round-of-16 match at the Prince Hamzah Sport Hall to advance in the quarterfinals of the week-long meet.
The 27-year-old pride of Davao will now face Sena Irie of Japan Sunday for a place in the semifinals and a ticket to the Tokyo Games, according to Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines (ABAP) secretary-general Ed Picson.
Petecio has been seeded in the preliminaries, being ranked no. 1 in her division (57 kg).
Ian Clark Bautista earlier kicked off the compact, seven-man Philippine team’s campaign in the qualifier on a high note after a close 3-2 decision over former world youth champion Hayato Tsutsumi of Japan.
Bautista, 25, and a Philippine Navy seaman, pounded his Japanese foe, a 2016 World Youth champion and two-time Asian Youth winner, in the second and third rounds to narrowly gain the nod of three of the five judges.
“Talagang nag-focus ako sa laban na ito. Malakas at magaling talaga siya pero talagang pinilit ko,” said Bautista, campaigning in the men’s featherweight division (57 kg).
“Alam ko pagkakataon na para makapunta sa Olympics.”
Bautista will next face former tormentor Chatchai Butdee of Thailand in the round of 16 on Friday.
Although already 34, Butdee, a silver medalist in the 2013 AIBA World Boxing Championships, defeated Bautista in the semifinals of the last 30th Southeast Asian Games in Manila.
The loss relegated the Filipino to a bronze medal finish, while the Thai went on to win the gold.
Bautista still needs to pull off two more wins to earn a berth in Tokyo.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph