Harry insists it ain't over

MANILA, Philippines - After losing to Armenia’s Hovhannes Danielyan in his first and only bout at the recent 15th AIBA World Championships in Milan, lightflyweight veteran Harry Tañamor said yesterday he’s not giving up on his dream to capture a medal at the 2012 London Olympics – even if the 48-kilogram division for men has been scrapped.

Tañamor, 31, will still be eligible to fight in London. The age limit for boxing in the Olympics is 34 and he’ll be right at the stretch. But the problem is qualifying for the Olympics where the men’s program has been cut from 11 weight divisions to 10 to accommodate 36 fighters in the three-class women’s event.

If Tañamor makes it, he’ll compete in the 51- kilogram flyweight division.

“It will be a big adjustment for me,” said Tañamor. “If I have to fight at 51 kilograms, I will. Anyway, it’s easier to put on weight than to lose. I’ll bulk up. I won’t have to reduce. At the start, I expect to be a little slow because of the extra weight. But as I get used to fighting as a flyweight, I’ll recover my speed.”

Tañamor said he expects to be challenged by the country’s up-and-coming flyweights like Rey Saludar and Aston Palicte who joined the nine-man team that trained for 2 1/2 weeks in Havana last month.

“The young fighters have a lot of potential but I think they’re not yet ready for the Olympics,” he said. “It takes experience and that’s my advantage. I want to prove myself all over again. If I’m given the chance, I’ll try to qualify for the coming Southeast Asian Games and the Asian Games.”

Tañamor said his amateur career is far from over.

“Laban pa tayo,” he added. “I’m ready to sacrifice for our country. I’ll train ever harder. Everything must come from the heart. I’ll do whatever I can to come back.”

Lack of international exposure rusted Tañamor’s armor and it was evident when he couldn’t find his timing against Danielyan, the fifth-seeded contender. Tañamor hadn’t fought since capturing the gold medal at the World Cup in Moscow last December. The layoff was too long, admitted national coach Pat Gaspi.

“If only Harry beat Danielyan, he would’ve surely gone to the finals,” said Gaspi.

Despite his World Cup victory, Tañamor wasn’t seeded in the top eight here because he didn’t rack up enough AIBA points from international tournaments during the year. That meant an early encounter with a seeded fighter and it proved fatal to his chances. If seeded, Tañamor could’ve feasted on an unranked fighter at the start and slowly regain his form as the level of competition went up.

ABAP secretary-general Patrick Gregorio, who flew to Milan to monitor the five Philippine fighters’ campaign, said he will push for more foreign outings next year, at least once a quarter. Tañamor said the decision will go a long way in preparing the fighters for the Asian Games and the Olympic qualifying tournaments.

Tañamor has bagged a silver and two bronzes in five World Championships but was a bust in the Beijing Olympics where he was bushwhacked by unheralded Ghanaian Manyo Plange via a 6-3 decision in the first round of eliminations. He won once then lost in the second round at the Athens Olympics. His goal is to win the P12 million bonus pledged by ABAP chairman Manny V. Pangilinan for the Filipino boxer who hits paydirt in London.