Leopoldo Serantes (March 15, 1962 – September 1, 2021) was a Filipino

amateur boxer Amateur boxing is a variant of boxing practiced at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games, as well as many associations. Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration, comprising three rounds of three ...

and soldier. He competed at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

in the Light Flyweight (-48 kg) division, winning the bronze medal in a lost bout against Ivailo Marinov from Bulgaria in the semifinals. Serantes' win marked the first time in 24 years that an athlete from the Philippines won an Olympic medal since boxer

Anthony Villanueva Anthony N. Villanueva (March 18, 1945 – May 13, 2014) was a boxer from the Philippines. He competed in the featherweight (−57 kg) division at the 1964 Olympics and won a silver medal. Shortly after the Olympics he turned professional, but ...

, his head coach, won a silver medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics, and he became the sixth Filipino overall to be awarded an Olympic medal.

Career

Serantes was a

Philippine Army The Philippine Army (PA) (Tagalog: ''Hukbong Katihan ng Pilipinas''; in literal English: ''Army of the Ground of the Philippines''; in literal Spanish: ''Ejército de la Tierra de la Filipinas'') is the main, oldest and largest branch of the ...

sergeant when he competed at the 1988 Olympics.

Southeast Asian Games

Bicol native Leopoldo Serantes was a member of the Philippine national boxing team during the 1980s. He is noted for having been the only gold medalist for the Philippines in the

1985 Southeast Asian Games The 1985 Southeast Asian Games ( th, กีฬาแห่งเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้ 1985, Kila haeng echeiy tawan oak cheing tai 1985), officially known as the 13th Southeast Asian Games, was a Southe ...

in Bangkok, defeating Thai boxer Supad Boonrowd in the men's 48kg final. Serantes also successfully defended his title in the

1987 Southeast Asian Games The 1987 Southeast Asian Games ( id, Pesta Olahraga Asia Tenggara 1987), officially known as the 14th Southeast Asian Games, was a multi-sport event held in Jakarta, Indonesia from 9 to 20 September 1987 with 30 sports featured in the games. ...

in Indonesia, and he was one of two Filipinos who won a gold medal in boxing in that edition of the games.

1988 Olympic results

Below is Serantes' boying competition record in the light flyweight division at the 1988 Seoul Olympics: *Round of 64: Bye *Round of 32: Defeated Hassan Mustafa (Egypt) referee stopped contest in the second round *Round of 16: Defeated Sammy Stewart (Liberia) by decision, 5-0 *Quarterfinals: Defeated Mahjoub Mjirich (Morocco) referee stopped contest in third round *Semifinal: Lost to Ivailo Khristov (Bulgaria) by decision, 0-5 (was awarded bronze medal) Serantes was assured of an $18,500 bonus from a group of Filipino businessmen following his bronze win.

Later life

Serantes suffered from a long history of pulmonary illness later in life. In January 2021, he was reportedly placed under intensive care at the Philippine Veterans Hospital due to a serious pulmonary and heart condition.

Bounty Agro Ventures Bounty Agro Ventures, Inc. (BAVI), also known as Bounty is a poultry company based in Pasig, Metro Manila, Philippines. As the main company of the Bounty Fresh Group of Companies, it manages roast chicken retail chains Chooks-to-Go and Uling Roa ...

committed to give Serantes a monthly allowance of for life to help pay his medical bills and needs. Serantes died on September 1, 2021, at the age of 59 due to complications of

chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a type of progressive lung disease characterized by long-term respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation. The main symptoms include shortness of breath and a cough, which may or may not produce ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Serantes, Leopoldo 1962 births 2021 deaths Deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Respiratory disease deaths in the Philippines Asian Games competitors for the Philippines Boxers at the 1982 Asian Games Boxers at the 1988 Summer Olympics Competitors at the 1985 SEA Games Filipino male boxers Philippine Army personnel Light-flyweight boxers Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Olympic boxers for the Philippines Olympic bronze medalists for the Philippines Olympic medalists in boxing SEA Games gold medalists for the Philippines SEA Games medalists in boxing Philippine Sports Hall of Fame inductees