2 GOLDS FOR RP YOUTH BOXERS
Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Aug. 24, 1998 - Light flyweight Danilo Lerio and flyweight Jovan Presbitero bagged two gold medals for Team Caltex Philippines at the close of the Asian Youth Boxing Championships Friday.
The left-handed Lerio, cut the taller Aman Batyrbayev down to size, 10-2, while Presbitero, rallying in the closing rounds on sheer power, turned back Serik Yeleuov, 5-2, to underscore the Filipinos' domination of Kazakhstan.
But their teammate Bert Laguna tumbled out of the gold medal podium as Taiwan's Tu Chung Haien cane up with a surprising 10-2 win in the bantamweight finals.
Despite Laguna's loss, Team Caltex Philippines emerged with an impressive, if not remarkable stint finishing a strong third behind Kazakhstan and Korea with a 2-1-1 gold-silver-bronze harvest in the overall standings.
Featherweight Christopher Partulan accounted for RP's single bronze medal for the four-man team coached by Rogelio Fortaleza and Vicente Arcenal Jr.
Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) president Manny Lopez lauded his wards' feat made possible by the no-nonsense, Spartan-like training by the coaches since Caltex came into ABAP's rescue two months ago.
``We're proud of our boys. We never doubted their abilities. But this feat underscored the kind of program ABAP is undertaking,'' said Lopez. ``The ABAP will never stop from here.''
Reported by: Sol Jose Vanzi
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