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| Eumir Marcial is Paris-bound next year with a shot at the gold in Hangzhou on Thursday night. PSC-POC Pool |
PASAY--Eumir Marcial is now one step away from an Asian Games gold after knocking out Syrian opponent Ahmad Ghousoon in their men's light heavyweight boxing semifinal on Wednesday at the Hangzhou Gymnasium in China.
Marcial tagged a solid right hook to Ghousoon that knocked the opponent out cold, and the referee stopped the contest at the 1:49 mark of the second round.
It turned out to be the much-needed decider as the scorecards revealed that Marcial was only up in three of the five judges after Round 1.
With the win, Marcial also booked a place in next year's Paris Olympics, becoming the fourth member of the Philippine team.
Now assured of a silver, Marcial can clinch the gold if he beats Chinese opponent Tanglatihan Tuohetaerbieke in the championship bout on Thursday night.
Tuohetaerbieke prevailed over Uzbekistan's Turabek Khabibullaev via a 4-1 split decision.
Follow him on X: @IvanSaldajeno
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