If there’s anything that stood out in Rep. Manny Pacquiao’s first privilege speech, it was his humility and his sincerity to serve the best way he can. The ever-humble Pacquiao immediately earned the respect of his colleagues in the House of Representatives when he admitted at the outset that he was awed by the fact that he is in the midst of this group of brilliant minds, of these “Honorable Sirs and M’ams,” as he put it.
Instead, the members of the House were awed by this neophyte gentleman from Saranggani, certainly one of the greatest boxers of all time and one of the wealthiest athletes in the world who humbly bowed before them, and politely but firmly declared that he hoped to learn from them and that he was there to serve not only his constituents in Saranggani, but the entire Filipino people as well.
And yet, Pacquiao failed to realize that he was probably one of the very few in that disreputable chamber who had the sincerity and mindset to serve the people. Many of those honorable sirs and madams can learn a thing or two from him in terms of sincerity, dedication and determination to succeed in his goals.
And if his dogged determination to succeed in the ring is any gauge, I am almost certain Pacquiao will learn the ropes in no time and become one of the few true people’s servants in that chamber. That he was serious in his new role was emphasized by the fact that he was the first among the 122 neophyte congressmen to deliver a privilege speech. While he was humbled by the presence of those brilliant minds, he was not the least terrified by them.
And so when Pacquiao called on his colleagues to unite to help Filipino athletes win the first Olympic gold medal for the Philippines, they crossed party lines to help the new congressman pursue the longtime quest for gold. It helped, of course, that Pacquiao was a national icon and the congressmen obviously wanted to ride on his popularity.
As a boxer who has brought unprecedented honor to the Philippines, Pacquiao knew that the elusive Olympic gold would bring even greater honor to the country.
The Philippines’ quest for gold started in 1924 when the country first sent athletes to the Olympic Games in Paris, becoming the first country from Southeast Asia to participate in the quadrennial meet. In the next Olympics in Amsterdam in 1928, swimmer Teofilo Yldefonso won a bronze medal, making the country the first from Southeast Asia to win a medal in the Olympics.
The Philippines has won a total of nine Olympic medals – seven bronze, including two by Yldefonso, and two silvers. The Philippines, according to Wikipedia, is the country with the most Olympic medals without a gold.
The silver medal winners were boxers Anthony Villanueva in the 1964 Tokyo Olympiad, and Mansueto Velasco in the 1996 Atlanta Olympiad. The bronze medal winners were Yldefonso, in 1928 in Amsterdam and in 1932 in Los Angeles; high jumper Simeon Toribio in 1932 in LA; boxer Jose Villanueva also in 1932 in LA; hurdler Miguel White in 1936 in Berlin; boxer Leopoldo Serrantes in 1988 in Seoul; and boxer Roel Velasco in 1992 in Barcelona.
Boxing has produced the most medals for the Philippines, three bronzes and two silvers, and is expected every Olympiad to win the first gold for the country. With Filipino boxers, led by Pacquiao and world superflyweight champion Nonito Donaire Jr., shining in professional boxing, there is no reason a Filipino amateur boxer cannot win a gold in the Olympics.
It shouldn’t be difficult to presume that the first Olympic gold for the Philippines will eventually be won in boxing. Hermie Rivera, a longtime friend and boxing aficionado, believes so.
Hermie was a former broadcaster whom this writer had the opportunity to work with during the coverage of the 1973 and 1974 Tour of Luzon when he was still working for Channel 4. He migrated to the United States and managed former two-time world champion Luisito Espinosa Jr. and former world champion Morris East.
And now, Hermie believes he has found the boxer who will win the Philippines’ first Olympic gold. His name is Julian Santos Chua, an 18-year-old Filipino-American middleweight who won the 2009 Indiana Golden Gloves championship by beating the previous year’s champion in October.
Hermie introduced Julian to Pacquiao and to coach Freddie Roach, who agreed to train the young 5-foot-9 Filipino-American in his Wildcard Gym in Hollywood. Julian began training with Roach on June 1.
“The kid has raw talent that can be honed to perfection by a skilled trainer like Freddie,” Rivera said. Julian is focused on his training, inspired by the reception he got from his idol Pacquiao when Hermie introduced them at the Wild Card gym.
Hermie has been pitching Julian to the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) and to whoever cared to listen.
ABAP executive director Ed Picson said he has seen the film clip of Julian’s fight on YouTube, and the ABAP coaches will give him a try. He said there is a dearth of local talent in the middleweight division and if Chua turns out to be as advertised by Rivera, he’ll push for his inclusion in the national pool for the Olympic qualifiers.
“The problem is we lack competition at his weight class. If he’s good enough, we might test him in a competition before deciding whether or not to bring him to the Asian Games in November,” Picson said. Hermie hopes Julian can make it to the 2012 London Olympics.
Picson said ABAP would conduct tryouts for Fil-Am boxers on Aug. 21-22 at the University of San Francisco (USF) Koret Health and Recreation Center. We hope the ABAP coaches will give Julian a chance to prove his prowess.
With Roach committed to training Julian, and Pacquiao rallying congressional support for Filipino athletes, the longtime quest for that elusive Olympic gold may finally find a reality in London.