Petecio denied an Asian Games medal in loss to China’s Yang

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

After four editions, an Asian Games medal still eluded two-time Olympic medalist Nesthy Petecio.

On Sept. 28, 2026, the Filipina boxing star absorbed a stunning 5-0 unanimous decision loss to China’s Yang Chengyu during their women’s 60-kilogram quarterfinal showdown in the 20th Asian Games at Nishio Gymnasium in Japan.

The PHL team mainstay failed to sustain her momentum after a second-round stoppage win over Jordan’s Mays Alreem Abukhadijah, succumbing to Yang’s height and reach advantage in all three rounds.

Both fighters traded effective combinations at the start of the first round, with Petecio still leaning on her overhand lefts while Yang banked on her clinical jabs and sneaky counterpunching.

However, a massive setback left Petecio in trouble after the referee deducted one point from her for holding Yang with only a minute left.

During a fiery exchange, the referee caught Petecio holding Yang for an extended period, prompting a one-point deduction.

Petecio had already been given a warning at the 1:27 mark of the first round for holding, but the referee penalized her 27 seconds later for another violation.

After the deduction, Petecio was already behind by a wide margin heading into the second round, with all the judges scoring the first round in favor of Yang, 10-8.

Petecio tried to sway the judges as soon as the second round kicked off by switching to an orthodox stance, flaunting her skill set as an adept switch-hitter.

Despite changing stances, Yang’s reach advantage proved to be the difference in the round as she tagged Petecio several times with a staggering hook followed by jabs to the body.

Petecio went for the knockout in the third round out of desperation, but Yang wisely evaded her attacks and backpedaled most of the time, knowing that she was already ahead on all scorecards.

Yang then secured a unanimous 30-26 win and advanced to the semifinals while assuring China of at least a bronze medal in the Asian Games.

For Petecio, the quarterfinal exit continued her streak of podium-less campaigns in the quadrennial meet. Carlo Paalam, the PHL boxing team’s lone survivor in the tournament, will look to punch a grand final ticket if he gets past Kazakhstan’s Makhmud Sabyrkhan today in the men’s 55-kilogram semifinals.