Nesthy Petecio reclaimed her Southeast Asian Games featherweight title with a unanimous decision victory over Indonesia’s Ratna Sari Devi in the final, held on Sunday at the Chroy Changvar Convention Center in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Petecio, the silver medalist in the same weight class at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, concluded Team Philippines’ campaign in the Games’ boxing competitions with four golds, five silvers, and one bronze. This medal tally surpassed the 3-1-5 haul achieved in the 2012 Games in Hanoi, Vietnam.
During the same Games, the 2019 World champion had to settle for bronze in the women’s welterweight division (under-60 kg) after a closely contested split decision loss of 2-3 to hometown favorite Tran Ti Linh in the semifinals.
Returning to her customary featherweight class, Petecio entered the final relatively unscathed following a knockout victory in the quarterfinals against Laos’ Minavanh Oupaxa and a dominant unanimous decision win against Cambodia’s Vy Sreysros in the semifinal.
However, her brother Norlan was unable to secure a double gold for the Petecio family as he succumbed to Thailand’s Bunjong Sinsiri in the men’s welterweight (under-67 kg) final, losing by unanimous decision.
Meanwhile, John Marvin also suffered a disappointing unanimous decision defeat in the men’s light heavyweight (under-80 kg) gold medal bout against Thailand’s Weerapon Jongjoho, earning another silver medal for Team Philippines.
