A footnote to the Pacquiao euphoria

Thanks in large part to Filipino world boxing icon Manny Pacquiao, our international pride is high enough to compensate for that kind of transnational shame that the abortive ZTE NBN deal and the World Bank report on our corruption wrought upon our country. It has historically been in boxing and unfortunately not in politics where our identity, as an honorable Filipino, is safely etched. Amateur boxer Anthony Villanueva who lost to Russian Stepashkin a controversial decision in the fight for the featherweight gold during the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and Gabriel “Flash” Elorde, whose 7-year reign as the world’s junior lightweight title holder was considered the longest, could be cited with a degree of immense pride.

Along the road to Pacquiao’s glory, are things, in the world of boxing, that need to be addressed. His triumph should unravel the story that in his sport, there are lesser mortals, the government has to pay attention to. Because we live in the time when our people share the worldwide adulation Manny is getting, it is relevant that we take a closer look at some warm bodies involved in the sport itself.

In boxing bouts, there are, aside from the pugilists themselves and their corner men, ring announcers, judges, referees, timekeepers. These are the persons directly handling the activity. They are licensed by the Games and Amusement Board before they do their job. But, it is most lamentable to learn that while government processes applications for these functions, it does nothing more than make sure that it collects the fees.

To my knowledge, there are no relevant qualifications required for these boxing officials. Let us take the case of boxing referees. Anyone who believes he knows how a left hook is delivered, or can demonstrate how a right cross differs from an over hand right, can apply to be either a referee. He is not required to pass any qualification standard because there is none set forth. So long as he pays the fee and passes the basic physical examinations, he can be allowed to determine the fate of a pug in the square arena.

Boxing, though described as a sweet science, is still a brutal sport. Just imagine that every boxer devotes weeks to practice how to deliver that kind of blow that can knock his opponent out. In preparing to maim his foe, he studies which part of the latter’s defense is open to his wicked punches. The very moment I saw the most vicious left cross of Manny Pacquiao land flush on the right jaw of Ricky Hatton, I feared death was not far behind. And it occurred to me that on the judgment call of Mr. Kenny Bayless, the referee, depended the life of the Briton.

Judging a boxing bout is not that easy either. It is not a matter of recording what one sees as a punch. It is as difficult as understanding what the rules are. For instance, how many of us know that a clear, effective and telling blow even if delivered as a short punch and does not appear to rock the head of a boxer scores a point while a backhand (because delivered like a bank hand in a ping pong match) is a foul blow? Or to be brutal about it, how many of our boxing officials know where can we find this rule?

On the matter of pay, boxing officials must, because they officiate the fights of professional combatants, be categorized as professionals too and therefore entitled to a kind of compensation that any other professional is both proud and happy about. It is anomalous that the boxers earn as professionals yet the people who officiate their match are not!

It is time that government realizes that there had been deaths to boxers and if only to prevent more casualties in the ring, it has to formulate the guidelines, qualifications, if you may, as to who may become boxing officials. Perhaps, academic background may be substituted for certain amount of actual experience but, when licensed is issued, there should also be continuous trainings, failing which the license may be suspended or revoked.

If in the midst of our Pacquiao euphoria, this concern is attended to, we are certain that our country shall continue to produce many other Manny’s in the future.