Hungry Magno wants Olympic gold medal

Irish Magno will be gunning for nothing but a gold medal when she campaigns in the Tokyo Olympics next year.

Magno said she has been training aggressively in her hometown in Iloilo City in preparation for the women’s boxing competition of the Summer Games.

Although she is training without a sparring partner, the 29-year-old puncher said she is still very positive that the country’s first Olympic gold medal is achievable.

“What I want is not just a medal, but a gold for the country. That’s my goal,” Magno said.

“Although I don’t have sparring partner, I still make sure to work on the heavy bags or, sometimes, I ask my siblings to help me during match meets.”

Aside from Magno, also qualifying for the Olympics are his fellow boxer Eumir Marcial, gymnast Carlos Yulo and vaulter EJ Obiena.

Marcial is training in Los Angeles while Yulo is in Tokyo and Obiena in the Italian coastal town of Formia.

Magno said although she is the only Olympian who is training locally, the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines is preparing a training program for her in either Thailand or India next year.

For now, she is preparing to enter a training bubble organized by the Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine Olympic Committee for those who have good chance of claiming an Olympic berth.

“That’s okay with me (bubble training) since I will have my coaches there and they could focus on what I really needed for the Olympics,” she said.