BIGWIGS FROM the world of prize-fighting like promoters Don King, Bob Arum and Oscar De La Hoya as well as active and well-known punchers like Mike Tyson and stars from yesteryears, would be receiving invitations to attend the World Boxing Council (WBC) Convention that Manila will host from Nov. 11 to 17.
“The world will be watching,” said chairman Eric Buhain, whose Games and Amusements Board (GAB) is in charge of the arrangements for the week-long event that would put the country in the boxing map once again.
Also being eyed to grace the conclave are Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Evander Holyfield, Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Roberto Duran, Julio Cesar Chavez and other marquee names that once made headlines in the brutal sport.
The convention has a registration fee of $ 100 and the GAB expects the arrival of almost 1,000 delegates from its 180-strong member countries.
The Philippines is one of 11 founding member countries of the WBC and for a while the governing body was presided over by the late Justiniano Montano Jr. and secretary general Rodrigo Salud, whose tandem left a lasting legacy that even current WBC president Jose Sulaiman is aware of.
Buhain said the GAB is shelling out P20 million in staging the convention and the influx of delegates, who are also bringing in family members, should shore up tourism.
The GAB is also proposing to stage a 60-round slugfest as part of the activities.
To guarantee the safety of the delegates, the GAB will ask for help from the Philippine National Police, while for tourism matters, the Department of Tourism will lend a hand.
The Manila Hotel, a landmark along scenic Roxas Boulevard, will be the official residence of the delegates and visitors.
