Olympics-bound Irish Magno finally settles down in training

MANILA, Philippines — There’s no place like home for Irish Magno as she gets to stabilize her preparations for the Tokyo Olympics with gym training in Janiuay, Iloilo for the first time in months.

The flyweight ace, who settled for limited workouts at the height of lockdown measures in Baguio and Pasig, now enjoys a daily gym practice in her hometown under a more relaxed modified general community quarantine (MGCQ).

“I can train in gyms here, at last. It’s my first time since the pandemic started,” said the 29-year-old fighter who came back home late last month after being stuck in Luzon when the pandemic erupted last March.

But Magno is taking her sweet time, starting with light training as of now to get her condition back with the Summer Games still a year away after its postponement due to the pandemic.

“Tokyo is still far away so there’s no rush for hard training this early. I’m just working on getting back the condition of my upper body and legs as of now,” she added.

From here, Magno is expected to regain her form with daily gym training in the morning and afternoon online workout session under the supervision of national team coach Boy Velasco and the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines (ABAP).

Aside from allowed gym training, Magno also got a lift from the Janiuay local government led by mayor Bienvenido Margarico with an upcoming fund-raising events to support her Olympic preparations.

“I’m very grateful for Janiuay mayor Margarico for this support. It’s a big help for me financially as they get to support my preparations all throughout,” she beamed.