Carlo Paalam delivered a furious finish in his 55kg gold‑medal match against Japan’s Rui Yamaguchi. In the end, however, it was the Filipino who was left frustrated after a 3‑2 split‑decision loss denied him an Asian Games crown on Friday at the Nishio Gymnasium. Instead, Paalam will have to settle for silver, the Philippines’ sixth in this edition of the continental showpiece to go along with 4 gold medals and 14 bronze medals (as of this writing).
Hometown Bet Denies Carlo Paalam
Paalam and Yamaguchi started cautiously, with both fighters feeling each other out and refusing to engage. The hometown bet, however, pressed forward more often, keeping the Filipino on the backfoot, though he wasn’t throwing punches in bunches to match his movement. At the end of Round 1, four of the five judges gave the nod to Yamaguchi for the early lead.
Action picked up in the second round, with Carlo Paalam beginning to let his hands go while Yamaguchi fought defensively. The former Olympian connected several times, but the Japanese boxer snuck in counters to sway two judges, while the other three awarded the round to Paalam.
Down on the scorecards, Paalam went for broke in the final round, pressing forward and throwing more punches. Yamaguchi, however, kept his composure, consistently escaping either by moving away or clinching for a reset. Paalam won Round 3 on all five judges’ scorecards, but it wasn’t enough to overturn Yamaguchi’s early advantage.
Carlo Paalam Rues Referee Intervention
After the fight, the 28‑year‑old Olympic silver medalist lamented the referee’s repeated interventions, which he said disrupted his momentum and prevented him from mounting a serious charge.
“… Referee again. I don’t know. Not a good decision. Hindi ko alam ang desisyon ng referee po palagi, ako palagi tinitingnan,” Paalam said. “Kahit anong momentum, ini‑stop pa rin po. Tapos iba talaga ‘yung referee rin… ‘Yung referee talaga parang ako palagi nakikita.”
Nearly every time Carlo Paalam got inside, the referee stopped the action to warn him for holding or using his head before resetting. In contrast, Yamaguchi rarely received warnings for clinching. Paalam also lamented what he believed was unfair judging.
“Gawin ko ‘yung best ko, pilit na lang ‘yung last round kasi kukunin ko na ‘yung last round. Wala na po eh, ubos‑ubos na talaga,” he added. “Nandoon naman lahat ‘yung improvement ko. ‘Yung sabi ko nga, ‘di namin hawak ‘yung desisyon. Kahit anong pilit mo manalo ka, kung judges talaga gagawa sa’yo ng paraan, wala ring silbi.”
Sour‑Graping After a Loss?
It is well within Paalam’s right to lament the judging. However, the scoring wasn’t outright robbery, as the first two rounds could have gone either way. The outcome might have been different had Paalam shown in Round 1 the same aggression and urgency he displayed in the final round.
Instead, the more experienced fighter let the younger Yamaguchi off the hook early by refusing to press the action and being content to go with the flow. By the time Paalam went for broke, he was already behind and in need of something dramatic in the final minutes.
In other words, Carlo Paalam left this gold‑medal match in the judges’ hands. Now, the Philippines will have to wait five more years to break that gold-medal drought.
