Light flyweight Josie Gabuco has become the first Filipino to win a gold medal at the Women?s World Championships in boxing in Qinhuangdao, China.
Gabuco who went down from flyweight to light flyweight scored a pulsating victory over hometown favorite and President?s Cup gold medalist, 20 year old Xu Shiqi who had beaten her in the Asian Championships earlier this year.
Gabuco who stunned World No. 2 Svetlana Gnevanova in the semi finals 12-7 to set up the showdown with Xu who had earlier beaten World No. 1 Lynsey Holdaway of Wales in her semi final bout.
Gabuco connected with a big right hand in the first exchange in round No.1 and Xu appeared unsettled but came back with the crowd cheering her on as she worked inside to post a 2-1 lead at the end of the round.
In round two Xu picked up the action and opened with a good right hand and then caught Gabuco with another right straight to the delight of the Chinese fans.
Xu took the second round 3-2 to lead 5-3 at the halfway mark.
Gabuco had a problem with her headgear while Xu had trouble with her gloves forcing the referee to allow them to take a break so their trainers could make the necessary adjustments.
Gabuco whose right was a telling factor in the bout started connecting with some good shots and enabling the Filipina to take the round 4-3 to go down by a mere point at 7-8 going into the final round.
The AIBA television commentators said ?it really makes for a very tight fourth and final round? even as they said that for the first time in the tournament the Chinese girl was under a little bit of pressure.
Gabuco was the more aggressive fighter and started off with a right hook even as the commentators noted that ?Xu seems to have lost a little bit of confidence which has been taken away by the persistence and perseverance of Gabuco? who continued to catch Xu with a stinging right hand right through the guard of the Chinese boxer.
The commentators noted that Gabuco ?looked the more confident of the two while Xu was a little bit quiet.?
The Chinese girl connected with a good right uppercut and worked well on the inside but Gabuco came through in an incredibly close bout to win in what the TV panel described as ?a great performance? in which she won the final round 3-1 for what was described as an emotional 10-9 victory to take the gold.
AIBA reported that the Chinese girl opened the bout with the more effective punches and led 5-3 after two rounds.
Josie Gabuco (R) wins the gold over China's Xu Shiqi at the Women's World Championships in Qinhuangdao, China.
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