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Philippines, 28 Apr 2024 |
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Pacquiao could close 2008 as 'Athlete of the Year' if he upsets De La Hoya By Danyeva Grace C. Donato PhilBoxing.com Sun, 05 Oct 2008 Runaway winner. This will be undoubtedly the consensus among sports writers in the Philippines when they select the athlete of the year awardee for 2008 in December. And this honor could be bestowed upon "pambansang kamao" Manny Pacquiao if he will score a big upset win against the taller and heavier Oscar De La Hoya on December 6 in Las Vegas. But even if Pacquiao will lose to the former Olympic gold medalist from Los Angeles, California, he might still be able to steal the honor from any other Filipino athlete who represented the country in various internationl competitions held this year, observed Inggo Mabunay, a retired pundit who once wrote a famous sports story involving an amputee cyclist who was allowed to participate in marathon. Mabunay, 74, said, aside from billiard players, "no other Filipino athlete has stirred the world of sports in major competitions this year that could match Pacquiao's spectacular ascencion to international stardom. Not even in the (Beijing) Olympics where our athletes failed miserably, except in wushu." Even if a Filipino player would pocket the inaugural staging of the World 10-Ball Billiards Championship at the Philippine International Convention Center, Mabunay said "his victory will still pale in comparison to Pacquiao's phenomenal success in the world of professional boxing." Oscar De La hoya, he said, is known all over the world "and not only in the United States." "Therefore, Manny Pacquiao is also known even in Africa and Europe by virtue of his fighting the most charismatic American boxer to ever grace the sport," he said. He said "only a gold medal in the World Olympics can dwarf Pacquiao's amazing rise to global imagination." Had Harry Tanamor won the first gold medal for the Philippines in the Beijing Olympics, "he could be automatically hailed not only as athlete of the year, but also as the darling of Philippines sports." And even if Pacquiao will defeat De La Hoya on December 6 and Tanamor had won the gold medal in the flyweight division, "the one who excelled in the Olympics will bring home the most coveted distinction of the best ever Filipino athlete." In the World Olympics, he stressed, an amateur athlete will risk his life and limb for the glory of his country without any assurance of earning millions of pesos as prize. "In professional boxing, even a stateless boxer like Joel Casamayor (he was a former gold medalist in the Olympics representing Cuba who abandoned his country for a "greener pasture" in the US) doesn't care what will his countrymen say about him as long as he earns millions of dollars." Mabunay explained. The "Athlete of the Year" awardee is selected by members of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA). Click here to view a list of other articles written by Danyeva Grace C. Donato.  |
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