THE WORLD Boxing Organization (WBO) is having an outreach program for children in Cebu, the country’s hotbed of boxing.
WBO Asia-Pacific chairman Leon Panoncillo Jr. will be in Cebu City on New Year’s Eve, to hand out gifts to the kids at the SOS Children’s Village in Talamban and at the Asilo dela Medalla Milagrosa on Gorordo Ave.
Panoncillo, who traces his roots in Carcar, Cebu, does outreach work to less privileged kids in Asia every year.
He has held similar projects in Thailand and Indonesia but he is doing it here for the first time.
Panoncillo is largely responsible for bringing WBO fights in the Philippines in partnership with the ALA Gym.
He is also credited for his effort in getting Golden Boy Promotions to notice Filipino boxers other than Manny Pacquiao.
Last March, Panoncillo was present when Golden Boy signed up Rey “Boom-Boom” Bautista and Z “The Dream” Gorres to a five-fight promotional contract.
The WBO official will be joined by Gorres, Bautista, AJ Banal and WBO Asia Pacific minimum-weight champion Donnie “Snake” Ahas, together with Cebuano promoter Sammy Gello-ani and trainer Edito Villamor, in Sunday’s affair.
After the outreach, Panoncillo will hold a press conference at the Laguna Garden Caf? to announce expected developments for next year.
This includes the proposed World Boxing Cup, where three WBO world championships are expected to be held here, and the newly created WBO Youth World Championships, where Banal is expected to fight for the Super-flyweight title this January.
