A pair of former sports officials criticized the organizers of the boxing competition at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games, where Thailand won 14 of 17 gold medals.
Former Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman William “Butch” Ramirez and former Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines (ABAP) president Manny Lopez said the competition showed signs of biased judging, with only one of 13 Filipino boxers winning a gold medal.
Ramirez described the event as a “farce,” citing concerns over fairness and integrity in officiating. He noted that in martial arts competitions worldwide, corruption and payoffs among judges have been observed.
Thai boxers dominated the boxing events, with only Eumir Marcial winning the men’s 80-kilogram gold medal for the Philippines on the penultimate day of the competition at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. Other Filipino athletes won silver and bronze medals in various weight classes. Olympic medalist Nesthy Petecio skipped her medal ceremony in protest of the officiating.
ABAP chairman Ricky Vargas said that winning against Thai boxers on home turf was difficult, pointing out that the Thais won 77 of the total scorecards compared with eight losses.
Lopez added that biased judging is a recurring issue in Thailand, recalling the 24th Southeast Asian Games in Nakhon Ratchasima, where Filipino boxers protested similar officiating practices.