Filipino boxer Carlo Paalam captured the silver medal in the men’s 55-kilogram division at the 2026 Asian Games after losing to Japan’s Rui Yamaguchi by a 2-3 split decision Friday at Nishio Gymnasium.

Paalam trailed early on the judges’ scorecards, with four of five judges awarding Yamaguchi the opening round. The Japanese boxer also edged the second round on three cards.

The Cagayan de Oro native responded with a dominant third round, sweeping all five judges’ scorecards at 10-9.

The late rally, however, was not enough to overturn the result. Judges 1 and 2 scored the bout for Paalam, 29-28 and 30-27, respectively, while Judges 3, 4 and 5 gave identical 29-28 scores to Yamaguchi.

After the bout, Paalam expressed frustration over what he described as repeated referee stoppages that disrupted his momentum.

“I'm so good, but referee again. I don't know, not a good decision. Hindi ko alam ang desisyon ng referee po palagi, ako palagi tinitingnan,” Paalam said.

“Kahit anong momentum, ini-stop pa rin po. Tapos iba talaga yung referee rin... Yung referee talaga parang ako palagi nakikita,” he added.

National team coach Ronald Chavez said the Filipino corner felt Paalam needed a knockout as the fight progressed.

“Sa first round nga akala ko lalamang pa tayo eh... Kaya sabi ko alanganin na 'to, ito na gawin natin, wala tayong gagawin na iba kundi pag hindi mo ma-knockout 'yan, kahit anong gagawin natin,” Chavez said.

Despite the narrow loss, Paalam said he plans to rest briefly before returning to training and did not rule out continuing his boxing career toward the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“Hindi maganda, pero okay lang po, move forward po tayo,” Paalam said. “Gawin pa rin yung best po, training pa rin, tsaka pahinga muna.”