Are our boxers truly ready?

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor GUILLERMO TEJIDA III Desk Editor NANETTE L. GUADALQUIVER Busines Editor CEDELF P. TUPAS Sports Editor (On Leave) RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

There was virtually weeping and gnashing of teeth in Thailand when what was possibly the last hope of our country for a slot in the Olympic games in Beijing got dashed with the results of the match between Negrense boxer Joan Tipon and Thailander Worapoj Perchkoom in Bangkok last Friday.

The fight ended in a draw, as far as the judges were concerned, but both the Thai and the Philippines camps swooped on poor refereeing as the reason why the bout ended in a non-decisive close. The man from New Zealand , who was picked to serve as referee, obviously had something wrong with his vision, because what the spectators clearly saw as an accidental slip, he ruled as a knockdown. He also did this for the Thai opponent of Tipon, not only for our bet, which was why even the managers of Perchkoom were lambasting him and calling for his ouster from the list of referees in Asian matches.

At least Tipon was not declared loser outright, though some Philippine observers and reporters did admit that he was not showing his best in that fight. But we cannot always get by with blaming officiating staff, or even the judges. In such an individual and personal game as boxing, the winner must show that he is indeed the superior one, if not by knocking out his opponent, by a decisive show of his superiority that neither referee nor judges can ignore.

While it appears that our boxers have been unfairly disadvantaged in their matches with Thai opponents, it has also to be admitted that many of the pugilists we send out to represent our country are disadvantaged as far as physical equipment are concerned. In the Tipon fight, doctors who accompanied the team to Bangkok pointed out that our boys are often mismatched, particularly as far as size and height are concerned.

It could also be considered a factor that most of our boxers come from families that are hard-up and could probably not provide them with adequate nutrition in their growing years, to say nothing about requiring from them to help in earning for their livelihood.

We may have the potentials, but there is still a lot to be done to really prepare our future contenders in international competitions, as recent events have shown.*