All RI's boxer edge to semifinals
All RI's boxer edge to semifinals
By Johannes K. Simbolon
JAKARTA (JP): Victories yesterday by light flyweight boxer
Lapaene Massara and featherweight fighter Wilpare Jamhur ensured
all of Indonesia's boxers made it through to the semifinals.
The previous day, light welterweight Meckson Barataman and
featherweight Rico Maspaitella beat their opponents at the
Soemantri Brodjonegoro sports hall in South Jakarta to book
semifinal berths.
Indonesia's seven other fighters all received first-round byes
to the semifinals.
The 23-year-old Lapaene, a quarterfinalist at the 1996 Atlanta
Olympics, beat Cambodia's Dararith Var 17-5 on points, while
Wilpare, a 27-year-old army sergeant in the Jakarta Military
Command, pummeled his way to a 27-3 victory against Laotian
Souksavane Sengthavisok in five scintillating rounds.
Hundreds of Indonesian supporters, some of them beating huge
drums, became hysterical on seeing both fighters send punch after
punch into their opponents' bodies and rushed to shake their
hands at the end of the matches.
The head of the National Boxing Association, Paul Toding,
said he was satisfied with the performance of both fighters.
"You can see that they still had a lot of energy up to the
last round."
Lapaene will now be looking for revenge in his semifinal
against Phillipine boxer Dissierto Effren, who beat him in the
18th Sea Games in Chiang Mai two years ago.
Yesterday Effren finished off Thailand's Samrot Kamsing in
the second round.
"I hope I can beat him this time," Massara said.
Wilpare now fights Pongsit Waingwisas of Thailand, who beat
Suarday Hj Yusof of Brunei yesterday.
Waingwisas was the gold medalist in the Kings Cup boxing
amateur championship several months ago, where Wilpare only got
the bronze medal. However they did not meet in that competition
due to being in different halves of the draw.
"I will go forward and never retreat," Wilpare promised.
Indonesia is the only country which has managed to get all its
fighters to the semifinals. Thailand, which has boasted it will
win most of the gold medals, has had one casualty when its light
flyweight Kamsing lost to Effren.
The semifinals start today at the same venue.