Eumir Marcial is one of our qualified athletes for the coming Paris Olympics, and he is among the brightest prospects of getting another gold medal for the country.
He recently demolished his Thai opponent, Thoedsak Sinam, in his first professional bout in the country entitled “Homecoming”, and he wants to use that as a springboard to bringing more glory to our country on the biggest stage of the sport.
As he prepares for France, he sat down with Philstar.com and shared some of his thoughts.
How long did you prepare for your Thai opponent in “Homecoming”?
Eumir: All in all, five months. After the Asian Games I didn’t stop training. I took a few weeks off, then it was back to gym. I really wanted to be prepared for my fight here in Manila. The fight was moved a little so the training was a bit longer but it all worked out well.
In the first few rounds, it seemed like you were just sizing him up.
Eumir: That was the plan. If you’ve seen my previous fights in the pros, I was knocked down three time in Vegas, it’s a good thing I recovered. In my third pro fight, I suffered a cut. That’s because I was overeager. I wanted to finish off the fight early. So now, I wanted to gauge my opponent in the first few rounds. Stay away from any possible accidents. And during the early rounds, my opponents definitely still had his strength and power. It all worked out perfectly.
So now, Olympics is the next target?
Eumir: I started April, but just light training. I spoke to our SecGen of ABAP, Sir Marcus Manalo, on the plans. There is an international training camp in the works, and one month before the Olympics, we should be in Paris already. We want to the properly acclimatized to the conditions in France.
Would you say there is a difference between amateur and professional boxing?
Eumir: So many people have asked me that. To me, I don’t really see too much of a difference. Boxing is boxing. The scoring system is the same, the rules are the same. The only difference is in the pacing of the rounds. Amateur is three rounds, while in the pros, it’s longer. The style, the decisions, the punches are just the same. So I don’t have any problems adjusting.
In Paris, you’re going up in weight, correct?
Eumir: Yes, I'm in the light heavyweight division. That’s where I qualified through the Asian Games. My natural weight, which is middleweight, was removed from the Olympic calendar. So I either had to move down or up in weight category. The decision we made was to move up, and through the grace of God, I qualified for Paris.
Are you confident of bringing your speed and power to a higher weight class?
Eumir: Yes! But if it’s height and size, I’m at a disadvantage, because that’s their natural weight. My advantage though is my speed, because I’m smaller than them. And my coaches have said that my power isn’t at a disadvantage, I still have that power.
Are you going to leave for the United States again?
Eumir: We haven’t finalized the plans just yet, but I have started preparing already. Regardless of where we end up training, I will be ready. A lot of people believe in my capabilities of getting the gold. There is pressure. But I’m using that pressure as motivation. There are times when I’m tired, I’m hurting, but that’s my inspiration to keep moving forward. I want that gold medal.