JUDE GALLAGHER’S OLYMPIC debut ended in a frustrating defeat to the Philippines’ Carlo Paalam on a close but unanimous decision (29-28 x4, 30-27) in their 57kg last-16 bout.
Paalam, the Tokyo Olympic silver medallist down at 52kg and the 2022 Asian champion up at 54, sufficiently edged the first two rounds in the judges’ eyes to bank his place in the quarter-finals, but Co. Tyrone man Gallagher pushed him all the way with an impressive performance in its own right.
Paalam, 26, who was one of the Filipino flagbearers during the Olympic opening ceremony, deservedly edged a high-class first round in the eyes of three of the five judges, his left hand the most eye-catching weapon of a brilliant round of boxing.
Gallagher, 22, appeared to up the ante in the second, whipping his left hand into Paalam’s body and creating plenty of openings upstairs. While Paalam, who again had plenty of his own success, landed the best shot of the round — a thunderous straight left over the top — Gallagher finished strongly as he backed the Filipino to the ropes and dished out a hurtful combination.
What seemed like a coin-toss of a round, however, was awarded by all five judges to Paalam, leaving the scores at 20-18 x3 and 19-19×2.
As such, Gallagher ostensibly needed a knockout in the third and final round to salvage the bout.
He went in search of it, utilising his natural size advantage attack more from the inside and loading up on shots, some of which connected. This his necessary recklessness was pounced upon by Paalam on a couple of occasions but the two-time Olympian was more content to smother Gallagher’s attacks and simply survive the round relatively unscathed, which he did.
Gallagher took the last round on four of the five judges’ cards, but Paalam took the unanimous victory in a brilliant battle.
'We knew it was going to be a tough fight... I thought it was tighter than the final verdict was'
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) July 31, 2024
Jude Gallagher reacts after his defeat to Carlo Palaam of the Phillipines#RTESport #Paris2024 #boxing
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“I thought I performed very well,” Gallagher told RTÉ Sport afterwards. “I think it was tighter than what the final verdict was. I’m proud the way I performed. Done the best I could, left it all in the ring. That’s all I could ask for.
“You can’t take nothing away from him,” Gallagher said of Paalam, who briefly commiserated with the Newtownstewart man during his interview with Joe Stack. “He’s a quality operator. I’m just happy to be on this stage, sharing the ring with operators like him, the best in the world. That’s where you want to be, like.
“I gave it my shot but just came up short.”
