PARIS - Janjaem Suwannapheng will take on Imane Khelif of Algeria in the women's 66-kilogramme semi-finals at 3.34am on Wednesday, hoping to enter the Thai history books by becoming the country's first female boxer to earn a shot at an Olympic gold medal.
Janjaem will be determined to surpass Sudaporn Seesondee's feat of claiming the bronze medal at the Covid-delayed Tokyo 2020 three years ago when she bowed out in the last four round of the women's 60kg category.
Sudaporn lost 3-2 to top seed and eventual champion Kellie Harrington of Ireland, but only after becoming Thailand's first female boxer to win a Games medal.
Janjaem, a two-time world championship medallist and a runner-up at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year, will face a formidable opponent in Khelif, who outclassed Hungary's Anna Luca Hamori to record a unanimous points decision and reach the semi-finals.
Janjaem, however, is also in top form after her stunning victory over top-ranked Busenaz Surmeneli of Turkey in the quarter-finals.
The 23-year-old put on a show of power and precision as she defeated the Tokyo Games champion 4-1 to claim a coveted semi-final spot, which guaranteed her a bronze medal.
Sprinter Puripol Boonson. (Photo supplied)
Janjaem knows what to expect from Khelif, who beat the Thai at the world championships last year before being disqualified.
"I know the Algerian boxer is very strong and I will try to watch her video to learn her tactics and correct mine," Janjaem said of Khelif.
Janjaem's victory over Surmeneli in the quarter-finals has not only ensured Thailand's first medal of the Paris Games, but also deflected some of the criticism being hurled at the country's boxing contingent for its disappointing campaign.
Thailand have sent eight boxers -- three men and five women -- to Paris and Janjaem is the only one left in the tournament.
Bunjong Sinsiri went furthest in the men's competition before losing to Erislandy Alvarez Borges of Cuba 5-0 in the quarter-finals of the men's 63.5kg category.
With the exception of Rio 2016, Thailand's boxing team have won at least a medal in every Olympics since the 1976 Montreal Games.
Puripol vows better show
Thai sprinter Puripol Boonson clocked 10.14sec to finish 21st overall in the men's 100m semi-finals on Sunday and failed to qualify for the final.
There were 27 runners competing in three semi-finals, and Puripol came ninth in third semi-final.
The gold medal went to American Noah Lyles, who won in the closest Olympic 100m finish in modern history as just five thousandths of a second separated him from Jamaica's Kishane Thompson.
The 18-year-old Puripol vowed to do better in four years' time.
"In four years, I will be stronger and will try to get a medal for Thailand," said Puripol, who was the youngest runner in the 100m field in Paris.
"All the athletes are very strong and so powerful, so I will have to work hard on building up my body.
He added, "The Olympics is the biggest event I've competed in. When I got into the stadium and saw how big the crowd was... it was something I never experienced before. In the next Olympics, I will not be so nervous like I was this time!"
Cyclist Phetdarin Somrat finished in 78th place in the women's road race event on Sunday, crossing the line 14:19 behind winner Kristen Faulkner of the US (3:59.23). Marianne Vos of the Netherlands took silver ahead of Belgium's Lotte Kopecky in a photo finish.
