Josie Gabuco, Alice Kate Aparri and Asian champion Annie Albania punched their way to the gold medal in women’s boxing of the 25th Southeast Asian Games Wednesday at the Olympasia gymnasium of the National University in Vientiane, Laos. Gabuco, bronze medalist in the 2008 World Women’s Boxing Championships in China, set off the team’s campaign on a high note, engaging Nguyen Thi Hoa of Vietnam in a virtual brawl in the final of the 46 kg. class and emerging triumphant, 6-5, for the first gold of the sport. The 22-year-old Gabuco was reduced to tears shortly after winning the hard-fought match and again just when the national anthem was about to be played during the ensuing medal-awarding ceremony.
Annie Albania of the Philippines, right, tags Indri Sambaimana of Indonesia with a right during the women’s 51kg gold medal bout in the 25th SEA Games in Laos Wednesday. AP
Aparri and Albania, both grizzled veterans like Gabuco, didn’t disappoint either. Also a bronze medal winner in the World Boxing Championships, Aparri outclassed and bloodied local bet Milvady, 15-4, to rule the 48 kg. division. So dominant was Aparri that she led, 8-0, until the Laotian connected on a wild left 38 seconds into the second round for her first point of the bout. The Laos native was then awarded two points after Albania was penalized to make it an 8-3 contest. But the Filipina never gave her opponent any opening from there, outscoring the Lao, 6-0, in the entire third round to lead, 14-3. And Albania? She was just too much, and too classy against Indri Sambaimana, outscoring the Indon, 6-0, in a referee-stopped contest during the final of the 51 kg. class. Albania, the lone boxing gold medalist during the 2007 SEA Games in Thailand, scored two standing eight counts in the opening round, and then another one in the second, prompting the referee to put a stop to the carnage. “We’re very happy because we scored 3-of-4 in women’s boxing. It’s very heartwarming because all of the sacrifices of the girls paid off," said Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) executive director Ed Picson.
The referee raises the arm of Filipina Alice Aparri, right, who beat Milvady Hongfa of Laos for the 48kg division gold in the 25th Southeast Asian Games in Laos Wednesday. GMANews.TV
With ABAP president Ricky Vargas and secretary-general Patrick Gregorio joining vice-president Manny Lopez at ringside, all three winners had each been assured of the P300,000 incentive pledged by ABAP chairman and Smart Communications head Manny V. Pangilinan. The cash windfall is apart from the P300,000 bonus dangled by Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Harry Angping to all RP gold medalists here. “There’s more work to do. We just hope our men’s team would be able to do the same thing our women team did," Picson said. Vying for the men’s gold Thursday are pinweight Bill Vicera, light-flyweight Harry Tañamor and featherweight Charly Suarez. Vicera climbs the ring against Lao bet Sikham, Tañamor takes on a tough Thai customer in Kaeo Prongprayoon and Suarez battles Cambodian Phal Sophat.
– GMANews.TV 
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