Christmas Day tragedy

Former WBC lightflyweight champion Yo Sam Choi’s death is a grim reminder of how dangerous the sport of boxing is.

A fighter risks his life in the ring. If he’s not prepared, physically or mentally, to fight, the probability of an accident waiting to happen rises at an alarming rate. It’s not worth putting your life on the line for a paycheck.  Life is worth much more than that.

In Choi’s case, he was not mentally fit to take on Indonesian journeyman Heri Amol who had lost six of his last nine bouts and was once knocked out by Filipino Donnie Nietes.

Choi, 35, battled Amol in Seoul last Christmas Day. With about 10 seconds left in the 12-round bout, the Korean retreated to his corner and gestured to the right side of his face, like he was in pain. Amol went after Choi and landed a right to the cheek. Choi crumpled to the canvas and barely beat the 10-count to finish the fight on his feet. Then, as he was declared winner on points, Choi collapsed in the ring.

The stricken fighter was rushed out of the ring on a stretcher and brought to the Soon Chun Hyang University hospital where he underwent an emergency two-hour surgery to relieve intra-cranial pressure in the brain due to a blood clot. A week later, he was pronounced brain dead. His heart, kidneys, liver and corneas were donated to patients in line for transplants. Last Wednesday, he was removed from life support systems and died. The ventilator was taken out after two examinations by a team of nine doctors.

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From Choi’s record, it didn’t seem like he was headed for a catastrophe. The win over Amol was his sixth in a row after losing a decision to Lorenzo Parra in a WBA flyweight title bout in Seoul three years ago. The defeat to Parra, however, was his third straight after bowing to Bebis Mendoza and Filipino Federico Catubay, both by decisions.

Choi turned pro in 1993 and racked up a 32-5 record, with 19 KOs. In 1999, he won the WBC 108-pound title and lost it in his fourth defense to Mexican Jorge Arce on a sixth round knockout three years later. 

Choi’s list of victims included Filipinos Rolando Baclayo (KO1), Reggie Palabrica (KO2), Jun Arlos (W10 and W12), Nathan Ballerda (KO4), Allan Llanita (KO5 twice), Bruce Expectacion (KO4), Bert Batawang (W10) and Lee Escobido (W8).

About a month ago, IBF flyweight titlist Nonito Donaire, Jr. said he received an e-mail from Choi’s manager offering a fight in Seoul. 

“I don’t choose my opponents,” said Donaire. “I’ll fight whomever my promoter (Gary Shaw) puts in front of me. I just found it eerie that after getting an offer to fight Choi, a month later, he’s dead.”

Sam Kim, a writer from the Yonhap News Service, recently bared chilling notes from Choi’s diary that pictured him in a sad state of depression. 

Writer Matthew Hurley described Choi as “a young man at odds with the sport and emotionally crippled by an overwhelming sense of loneliness.”

Apparently, Choi was distraught when boxing in Korea suffered a decline due to the Asian financial crisis. He lost the chance to make good money as a fighter and lost his friends, too. Fighters were reportedly not paid their purses. Choi saw action only once in 2005 and twice in 2006. The entourage that surrounded him in his halcyon days as a world champion suddenly disappeared.

Some of Choi’s scribblings in his diary:

“I miss so much the people who have  left me. Will boxing leave me, too?”

“There are wounds in my heart.  I need treatment.”

“Not much time is left. Will I be a loser again? I can’t concentrate. I just want to end it all.”

“One step back, then I die. This is a match on the brink. I just want to live a simple life in a pretty house in a green landscape with someone I love. Now, I don’t like the smell of blood anymore. I’m just afraid of tomorrow.”

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Choi’s diary notes made him out to be suicidal. As the Korean climbed into the ring to fight Amol, it appeared like he had a death wish. He was mentally unstable and in no condition to engage anyone in a fight.

For sure, the tragedy will prompt boxing critics to once again call for the abolition of the sport. But the answer isn’t to eradicate boxing which is a source of livelihood for millions all over the world. The solution is to regulate it thoroughly and with compassion. 

Choi’s tragedy could’ve been averted if only Korean boxing authorities knew about his troubled mental condition. 

In our country, it took the Games and Amusements Board to order the retirement of Flash Elorde and Rolando Navarrete who both still wanted to continue fighting despite deteriorating skills at a late stage of their careers.   

In boxing, a stoppage too early is better than a stoppage too late. Referee Bruce McTavish has often said he wouldn’t ever hesitate to step in two punches too early than two punches too late to save a fighter from a possible tragic ending. It’s the same thing in deciding when to stop a boxer’s career.