Female boxer Mitchel Martinez of Bacolod City missed out on a Southeast Asian Games gold medal yesterday, bowing to her superior Thai foe in the lightweight division finals in Nakhon Ratchasima , Thailand .

Martinez , an Asian Championship silver medalist, absorbed an 11-21 beating at the hands of Sumittra Ngoksungnoen at the Tumbon Mueangpug Stadium amid fresh allegations of “biased judging” favoring the Thai bets.

“She lost steam,” boxing analyst Recah Trinidad, who was at the venue covering the fight for NBN, told the DAILY STAR in describing Martinez's performance against the Thai champion.

Martinez stayed in step with her rival at the end of the first round, 7-all, but was unable to find her form, losing the second round, 3-7, and the final round, 1-7.

But a pooled report from the Philippine contingent said Martinez 's match was the “most glaring example” of biased judging.

“Despite getting the better end of the exchanges, Martinez surprisingly lost to the Thai, 11-23. To the dismay of the small Filipino gallery, Martinez struck with two right straights at Sumittra's kisser – only to see both punches awarded to her Thai opponent late in the second round and early in the third,” the report said.

The defeat of the acknowledged leader of the women's boxing team essayed the fate of the entire squad, which combined for five silvers with the only gold coming from Annie Albania, who knocked out her Thai rival in the first round of the flyweight finals.

Also settling for silvers were Alice Kate Aparri (lightflyweight), Annalisa Cruz (light bantamweight), Jouveliet Chilem (bantamweight) and Ronijen Sofla (featherweight).

The rash of silvers could be a portent of things to come today when seven other Filipinos, including six Negrenses, gun for gold medals against Thailand 's best in the men's division.

Junel Cantancio of Bago City , who reached the finals of the bantamweight division after beating Quoc Viet Tran, 20-13, faces Olympic silver medalist Woorapoj Petchkoom for the gold.

Another Bagoeño, Joegen Ladon goes up against Pichai Sayota, the defending lightweight champion, who toppled Romeo Brin in Bacolod two years ago.

Early finalists Godfrey Castro of Cadiz City and Bagoeños Larry Semillano and Junie Tizon, and Orlando Tacuyan Jr., whose father is from Bacolod, are also expected to encounter rough sailing in their bid for gold medals.

Castro tries to avenge the defeat of another Cadiz pug, Warlito Parreñas, as he takes on former world champion Somjit Jongjohor, one of four Thai gold medalists in the Bacolod SEA Games two years ago.

The quick and wily Jongjohor relegated Parreñas to a bronze-medal finish in 2005.

Semillano, a gold medalist as a featherweight in the 1997 SEA Games in Jakarta , will have an even tougher task when he rubs mitts with 2004 Olympic champion Manus Boomjumnong for the gold.

Tizon tackles another Thai pug in Suriya Prasathinpimai for the middleweight gold.

Considered the country's most promising amateur, the lanky Tacuyan, 19, who grew up in Angeles City , takes on Sailom Adi in the featherweight finals.*CPT

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