Boxer returns from Tokyo to a promotion

MANILA – Boxer Eumir Marcial has been promoted to sergeant of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) for winning the Olympic bronze at the Tokyo Games.

Eumir Marcial (middle), whose rank was Airman First Class prior to the Olympics, was pinned with the sergeant chevrons by Philippine Air Force commander Lt. Gen. Allen Paredes (right) and Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea shortly after he arrived from Japan Monday (Aug. 9, 2021). (PAF photo)

Marcial, whose rank was Airman First Class prior to the Olympics, was pinned with the sergeant chevrons by PAF commander Lt. Gen. Allen Paredes and Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea shortly after he arrived from Japan Monday.

The boxer who hails from Zamboanga entered the PAF in 2013 and is organic personnel of its Civil Military Operations Group.

The boxer was also welcomed by Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, chair of the Senate Committee on Sports, and representatives from the Philippine Sports Commission and the Philippine Olympic Committee.

As part of safety protocols against Covid-19, Marcial will undergo the mandatory quarantine.

Marcial fell to Ukraine’s Oleksandr Khyzhniak who won via split decision at the semi-final round of the men’s middleweight event at the Kokugikan Arena in the Japanese capital.

In 2019, Marcial brought home the silver medal in the men's middleweight (75-kg.) category at the AIBA World Boxing Championships in Ekaterinburg, Russia. (PNA)