Win bronze at Paris Olympic 2024  

Nesthy Petecio of the Philippines and Esra Yildiz Kahraman of Turkey won bronze medals but missed out on the gold medal match in the boxing women’s 57kg at Paris 2024.

Kahraman’s run came to an end in a 5-0 unanimous decision loss against number one seed Lin Yu Ting of Chinese Taipei, although she still earned her country’s third bronze medal of the Games.

Nesthy Petecio and Esra

Petecio lost to Julia Szeremeta of Poland in a 4-1 split decision in their semi-final match at Roland-Garros on Wednesday, August 7.

Petecio wins Philippines’ second boxing bronze

Nesthy Petecio‘s second Olympic gold follows her silver medal in Tokyo 2020 (held in 2021), which came after a hard-fought encounter with the Polish fighter.

Petecio, an Olympic boxer from the Philippines, went viral in 2021 after dedicated her gold to the queer community.

Despite being defeated, the 32-year-old’s bronze medal gives the Philippines their fourth medal in Paris 2024 and second in boxing, following Aira Villegas’ bronze the day before.

Petecio dominated the first round, demonstrating excellent tenacity and impressing all five judges who ruled in her favour. However, her opponent recovered in the second round and re-entered the battle, albeit neither fighter was able to seize control of the bout.

That is how it would remain in the third and final round, with only one point separating them and a spot in the gold medal match on the line.

Szeremeta ultimately won, winning 4-1 via split decision to go to the final. Szeremeta will now meet Lin Yu Ting of Taiwan for the gold medal.
Ding Ting is one of two boxers accused by discredited sports organisation the International Boxing Association (IBA) of breaching an unclear gender eligibility test in a tournament last year. The other is Imane Khelif of Algeria, who advanced to the women’s 66kg bracket and will compete for the gold medal on Friday. The IBA has not provided evidence that these two boxers failed testing, and neither has ever identified as transgender or intersex.

Kahraman gets defeated by a unanimous verdict but wins bronze

In the previous match, Kahraman faced a difficult challenge against gold medallist Lin, and she had to defend herself from the start.

Lin went on the offensive and gained control of the fight in the first round, and he maintained this strategy throughout the evening. However, the Turkish warrior refused to give up and fought till the end.

It was always going to be a difficult task, and despite losing in the semi-finals, Kahraman can leave with a positive attitude.

Her bronze medal achievement improves on her fifth-place finish three years ago in Tokyo 2020, giving Türkiye its fourth medal of Paris 2024.

Paris 2024 boxing: women’s 57kg

Bronze: Nesthy Petecio (Philippines)

Bronze: Esra Yildiz Kahraman (Türkiye)

Nesthy Petecio attends the Olympic medal ceremony

Nesthy Petecio was awarded the bronze medal in the women’s boxing 57kg category at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Sunday.

Petecio settled for bronze after falling short to Poland’s Julia Szeremeta in the semifinals. A semi-finals ticket assured her an Olympic bronze medal.

Petecio’s second Olympic medal follows her silver medal from Tokyo three years ago.

The Filipina boxer has entered the ranks of the Philippines’ Olympic medallists, with Carlos Yulo, Hidilyn Diaz, and Teofilo Yldefonso.

Lin Yu-Ting of Chinese Taipei won the gold medal, while Szeremeta finished second. Esra Yildiz Kahraman of Turkey took bronze as well.

The Philippines officially concluded its campaign with two gold medals from Yulo in gymnastics and two bronze medals in boxing, one from Aira Villegas.

Esra’s gesture sparked controversy

Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting is on the verge of Olympic gold despite a maelstrom of gender controversies that have overshadowed her Paris performance. The resilient boxer is guaranteed at least a silver medal after defeating Turkey’s Esra Yildiz Kahraman in the women’s 57-kilogram semifinals.

Esra Yildiz Kahraman, noted for her aggressive style, fired a flurry of combinations in an attempt to unsettle the 5-foot-9 Yu-ting. However, her efforts were in nothing as Yu-ting cruised to a 5-0 victory, advancing to the gold medal match against Poland’s Julia Szeremeta.

Yildiz Kahraman added to the drama by repeating a provocative gesture during the match, similar to Bulgaria’s Svetlana Kamenova Staneva’s actions in the quarterfinals. She produced two Xs with her index fingers, possibly referring to the female chromosome symbol, reigniting the current debate about Yu-ting’s gender.

This gesture comes on the heels of a larger scandal involving Yu-ting and Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, who have been at the centre of gender identity debates throughout the Olympics. The two athletes were excluded from the 2023 World Championships for violating gender eligibility tests, resulting in a ban from the International Boxing Association (IBA).

IOC defends boxers amid gender debate; IBA maintains firm

IBA President Umar Kremlev noted that DNA tests confirmed that both athletes have XY chromosomes. However, IBA Secretary General Chris Roberts alluded at the outcomes without providing details, advising the public to “read between the lines.”

Despite the IBA’s stance, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has supported the boxers, emphasising their distinct eligibility rules while preserving the athletes’ ability to compete. The IOC, which has also barred the IBA from competing in the Olympics, strongly defended the athletes, with spokesperson Mark Adams citing Khelif’s female identity and credentials.

IOC President Thomas Bach decried the continuous social media hatred and aggressiveness, calling it unacceptable and refusing to participate in what he called as a “culture war.” Nonetheless, the continuous scrutiny has cast a pall over Yu-ting and Khelif’s Olympic careers.

Unfazed by the issue, Yu-ting elected not to comment on Yildiz Kahraman’s gesture after the match, instead expressing gratitude to her supporters. “Entering the gold-medal match fills me with gratitude for making it this far,” she told reporters, reminiscing on her difficult path from early elimination in Tokyo to the edge of gold in Paris.

The highly anticipated women’s 57kg gold medal bout is scheduled for Saturday, August 10 at 3:30 p.m. ET, with Yu-ting hoping to complete her difficult Olympic career with a golden finish.

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