CEBU CITY - Former Davao City standout Nesthy Alcayde Petecio and teammate Aira Villegas were already assured of bronze medals after beating their quarterfinals opponents yesterday in the Korotkov International Tournament in Russia.
Former Aiba Women’s World Boxing silver medalist Petecio, who hails from Tuban in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur but started her amateur boxing career in Davao City, first disposed of Chinese World Championship bronze medalist Liu Piao Piao, 5-0, in their elimination bout before dominating her Russian Karina Tazabekova, 4-1, in women’s kilogram division.
National women’s boxing coach Nolito “Boy” Velasco said Petecio had to endure the dirty tactics of the Russian fighter. “Nainis si Nesthy pero natamaan nya ng mga malulutong na jab straight and upper cut to the body,” Velasco said in a Facebook interview with Sun.Star Davao yesterday.
She will next face perennial tormentor Rio Olympics silver medalist Yin Junhua of China in the semifinals set today. The latter had defeated Petecio in their past three meetings, the last one in the quarterfinals of the World Championships in Vietnam.
“Dili lang ko kasulti if mudaug na ba ko nya ugma, always lang ko ready (I don’t know how our bout will go but I am ready),“ Petecio said.
Velasco said they already have a strategy, adding: “Maganda naman ang preparations ni Nesthy.”
Petecio recently clinched golds in women's 54-57 kilograms featherweight division of the 1st Indian Open International Boxing Tournament held in February this year and in the women's 57-kg title of the XXXV International Felis Stamm Tournament for Elite Men and Women in Warsaw, Poland in March.
Villegas, for her part, proved too much for her Mongolian rival, 5-0, to book a semis berth in 51 kgs.