NATIONAL women's boxing coach Nolito "Boy" Velasco still insisted that it's the judges who need to improve after the controversial loss that her boxer Nesthy Alcayde Petecio absorbed in the 18th Asian Games.
"Ang judges po ang dapat ayusin Ma'am kasi po wala man kahit isang tama (ang Chinese) pero talo pa rin si Nesthy," Velasco replied when asked to assess the performance of his wards.
Chinese Junhua Yin defeated Petecio, 3-2, in their round of 16 women's 57-kilogram featherweight encounter. Yin, however, ended up with the gold medal via a 4-1 victory over North Korea's Son Hwa Jo in the championship bout.
Velasco also said the women's boxing team needs to train abroad. "Kailangan namin mag-training sa labas. Australia or other country, kung saan mas maraming mga babaeng boxers," he added.
The national women's boxing team only had two entries in the Asiad. Irish Magno bowed out in the women's flyweight round of 16 after losing to North Korea's Pang Chol Mi.
Petecio, it can be recalled, swept four golds in different international competitions, including the 10th International Boxing Tournament in Russia last May where she beat Rio Olympics silver medalist Yin in the semifinals, leading to her Asian Games preparations.
The national men's boxing team, meanwhile, brought home one silver courtesy of flyweight Rogen Ladon and two bronzes of lightweight Carlo Paalam and middleweight Eumir Felix Marcial. Paalam and Marcial, too, were reportedly victims of biased judging.
In the 2014 Incheon Asian Games, the Philippines copped one silver and three bronzes in boxing.
Overall, the country improved its standing to 19th with four golds, two silvers and 15 bronzes compared to 22nd place in Incheon with a 1-3-11 medal count.