It is also the third medal for the Philippines in the current Olympiad.
On Wednesday, August 7, Filipina boxer Aira Villegas took on Turkish representative Buse Naz Cakiroglu in the semifinals bout in the women’s 50kg division of boxing in the Paris 2024 Olympic games.
However, despite her best efforts to defeat her opponent, Villegas loss to Cakiroglu in a unanimous decision, as the latter scored a perfect 30 from each of the five judges after three rounds.
With that, the Philippine representative officially bowed out of the 2024 Olympics, which is also her debut in the quadrennial meet, with a bronze medal for the country.
She is one of the two athletes to be bringing home an Olympic medal this edition in boxing, with Tokyo 2020 silver medalist Nesthy Petecio competing in the semifinals of the 57kg division on Thursday, August 8.
Villegas’ bronze is also the country’s third medal in Paris, with the first two coming from gymnast Carlos Yulo, who became the first Filipino to bag two gold medals after winning the floor exercise and vault events over the past weekend.
As of August 7, at 11:40 pm, the Philippines ranks 23rd in the overall medal tally with 2 gold medals and 1 bronze.