In her semi-final bout against Italy's Irma Testa who won in the first round after using her six-inch height advantage and long reach to her favour, Petecio switched gears and turned aggressive against her much taller opponent in the next two rounds. The tactic worked and Petecio earned her ticket in the final with a win via split decision.

In the quarterfinals, the 29-year-old boxer beat out Colombia's Yeni Marcela Arias Castaneda—who had previously beaten Petecio in 2008—in the featherweight quarterfinal via unanimous decision. She won with a score of 5-0 and had previously triumphed over Marcelat Sakobi Matshu from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Yu Ting Lin of Taiwan. 

With fellow boxers Eumir Marcial and Carlo Paalam also assured of an Olympic medal, the Philippines is sure to bring home four medals this year—the first time in history, making the country's Olympic campaign this year the best ever. For Petecio, she already has her eyes locked on the next Games, "We're still chasing the gold medal. It isn't over yet, there's still Paris [2024 Games]".

See also: Boxer Eumir Marcial Assures Philippines Of Third Olympic Medal

This article was originally published on July 28, 2021 and was updated on August 3, 2021.