Eumir Marcial wins by first round ref stoppage, advances to Olympic boxing QFs

Eumir Marcial made his much-awaited Olympics debut in a convincing fashion.

With 19 seconds left in the first round, the referee decided to halt the bout as Marcial ousted Younes Nemouchi of Algeria in the Round of 16 of the men’s middleweight division at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics Thursday at the Kokugikan Arena.

Barely seconds into the clash, Marcial quickly scored a knockdown followed by strong punches that caused Nemouchi to sustain a cut above his eyes.

The bout was officially called 2:41 into the first round.

The 25-year-old fighter will now move on to the quarterfinals where a win would guarantee the Philippines of at least a bronze medal.

He will next face Arman Darchinyan of Armenia.

Marcial did not need to compete in the Round of 32 after drawing a bye owing to his top 4 Olympic ranking from the AIBA (International Boxing Association).

Marcial turned professional last year after he signed a six-year deal with MP Promotions.

—Bea Micaller/JMB GMA News