Elordes gather aid for Bogo

The Elorde family will visit Bogo City on a relief mission soon to extend aid to relatives and the homeless in the birthplace of the late world junior lightweight boxing champion Gabriel (Flash) Elorde. Bogo City, a business hub in the northeast coast of Cebu, suffered an estimated P700 Million damage in property and commerce in the wake of typhoon Yolanda.

Liza Elorde, wife of the ring legend’s son Johnny, told The Star the other day “we are just collating some relief goods” and the family is planning a visit. In 2008, Elorde’s widow Laura donated several pieces of memorabilia now displayed at the Bogo City Museum and Library. Elorde’s son Marty personally delivered the items to Bogo City Mayor Celestino Martinez.

The memorabilia include boxing gloves, fighting shoes, a pair of black leather shoes, fight souvenir programs, news clippings of milestone bouts, a bronze statue and a championship belt encased in a glass cabinet at a corner of the museum. The corner is labelled “Gabriel ‘Flash’ Elorde Memorabilia, World Junior Lightweight Champion 1960-1967, Boxing Hall of Famer.” Behind the cabinet are two framed copies of news clippings reporting on Elorde’s knockout win over Harold Gomes to win the world 130-pound title at the Araneta Coliseum in 1960.

Outside the museum is a life-sized statue of Elorde in the middle of the plaza whose main attraction is a roller skating rink. On one end of the plaza is a platform called the “Gabriel ‘Flash’ Elorde Community Stage.” Typhoon Yolanda blew away the stage roof but the statue was untouched, still erect despite the 315 kilometer-per-hour winds that swept the city for over three hours recently. The winds also damaged the museum roof, causing water leaks that soiled several artefacts on display. Today, there is residual water on the floor of the museum and artefacts are covered in plastic to avoid damage from leaks but the Elorde cabinet is unscathed.

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According to boxing trainer Jun Bubuli, Bogo City is also the birthplace of another Filipino fighter Dadoy Andujar who lost to Victor Rabanales in a bid for the WBC bantamweight title in Los Angeles in 1993. Andujar, now 45, lists former world champions Luisito Espinosa and Rolando Bohol as victims in compiling a record of 40-13-2 with 17 KOs. Bubuli himself lives in the city. Former two-time world boxing champion Dodie Boy Peñalosa is also a resident. Peñalosa’s house was damaged during the storm but has since been repaired.

Liza, whose sons Juan Miguel and Juan Martin are professional boxers, said the Elorde family has often visited relatives in Bogo City in the past. Elorde’s son Gabriel, Jr. or Bebot said there’s a barangay full of Elordes. “My brother Marty keeps us in touch with our relatives in Bogo,” said Bebot.

Elorde was the youngest of 16 children of his father Luis and first wife Luisa. When Luisa died, Luis remarried and second wife Alberta bore four children, the oldest of whom Ramon had a brief pro career in 1975-76. The Elordes’ ancestral home still stands in the city. Elorde left Bogo to pursue his boxing career and later settled in Little Baguio then Sucat.

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Elorde and wife Laura, now 86, had seven children. Bebot said the family got together for Mass on Elorde’s 29th death anniversary at his Manila Memorial Park gravesite last Jan. 2. The family was joined by St. Rita nuns whose church and school on Sucat were never left out of a share of Elorde’s purses during his heyday.

Elorde, who died of lung cancer at 49 in 1985, began his pro career in Cebu in 1951 and fought his first 11 bouts in the province. He returned to Cebu in 1962 and 1965 to defend his Oriental lightweight crown, outpointing Japan’s Teruo Kosaka and countryman Rene Barrientos. Elorde reigned as world junior lightweight titlist for over seven years until he was dethroned by Yoshiaki Numata on a majority decision in Tokyo. The loss to Numata ended a string of 10 successful title defenses over Gomes in a rematch, Joey Lopes, Sergio Caprari, Auburn Copeland, Solomon Boysaw, Love Allotey, Kosaka twice, Suh Kang Il and Vicente Derado.

Elorde went on to fight up to 1971, ending his career with a loss by decision to Hiroyuki Murakami in Tokyo to drop his record to 89-27-2, including 33 KOs. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York, in 1993. The other Filipino Hall of Famers are Pancho Villa and promoter Lope (Papa) Sarreal, Sr. who was Elorde’s father-in-law.