AIRA Villegas’ remarkable journey in the women’s 50-kilogram boxing division at the Paris Olympics came to an end early Wednesday (Philippine Time) after a semifinal loss to Turkiye’s Buse Naz Cakiroglu. The entire boxing event was held at the iconic Roland Garros Stadium in downtown Paris.

Despite the defeat, Villegas will bring home the bronze medal.

Cakiroglu, the third seed in the competition, proved to be a formidable opponent for Villegas. She demonstrated superior accuracy from the first round, delivering a right straight at the 2:22 mark that wobbled Villegas, prompting referee Wade Peterson to issue a standing eight-count.

Villegas seemed to have a breakthrough moment just before the final minute of Round 2 with a right hook that appeared to knock Cakiroglu down. However, Peterson, whose judging in bouts involving Filipino fighters has been criticized by some boxing fans, ruled it a slip. All five judges still awarded the round to Cakiroglu.

In Round 3, Villegas was unable to overcome Cakiroglu’s dominance, and the judges unanimously scored perfect 30s in favor of the Turkish boxer. Cakiroglu will now face top-seeded Chinese boxer Wu Yu, who won a 4-1 split decision over Kazakhstan’s Nazym Kyzaibay, for the gold medal early Saturday (Philippine Time).

Judges Radoslav Simon and Manuel Vilarino both scored one round each as if Villegas was knocked down, with Simon giving a 10-8 score in Round 1 and Vilarino doing the same in Round 3.

Despite the setback, Villegas’ performance earned her a well-deserved bronze medal, marking a significant achievement for the Filipino athlete.