THE PHILIPPINE Daily Inquirer annually honors a living Filipino who has made the most positive impact on the life of the nation. It is the first time that the editors have named a sports figure as the Filipino of the Year.
Twenty-five editors nominated the following (in the order of number of votes received): COA’s eight-member all-female audit team which uncovered Meralco’s overcharges (thanks for the refund, guys), with Cheryll Apalisoc, who single-handedly exposed the irregular PPA computations of four electric coops in the provinces;
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Bayani Fernando (also a nominee last year); Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. (who was the Filipino of the Year in 2000); former President Corazon Aquino (“for not endorsing any presidential candidate,” said one editor); Speaker Jose de Venecia (for adhering to the high court ruling on the Davide impeachment despite the high risk of losing his post); Juan de la Cruz, the Filipino Everyman as the usual long-suffering victim of the usual suspects; Josette Biyo (science teacher who won the Intel Excellence Teaching Award, and carries the distinction of being the only Filipino with an asteroid named after her); CJ (Christian Jan) Suarez, the World Cup bowling champ, and Lieutenant senior grade Antonio Trillanes, one of the outspoken and charismatic leaders of the Oakwood mutiny.
FOR PROVIDING a stream of light, hope and pride in a year darkened by the war in Iraq, the SARS outbreak, the Oakwood mutiny, corruption scandals and the sleazy political wheeling and dealing in the run-up to this year’s election, boxing champion Manny Pacquiao has been chosen by the Inquirer as the Filipino of the Year 2003.
He was the hero the Philippine Sportswriters Association branded a heel for snubbing the PSA Awards Night early in 2003 where he was a Co-Athlete of the Year honoree with Asian Games champion Mikee Cojuangco-Jaworski.
And it didn’t help his reputation any when he went into a drunken rampage after being snubbed by a singer at a bar in General Santos City during a night out with the boys last June.
But five months later, Paquiao turned all this around.
First, the former bakery worker from General Santos City reminded everybody that he still packed dynamite in both fists, defending his International Boxing Federation (IBF) super bantamweight title for the fourth time with a third-round technical knockout of the erstwhile unbeaten Emmanuel Lucero in Los Angeles in July.
Then the spoiled brat of Philippine sports became a national treasure in November as he stunned the boxing world by demolishing the best pound-for-pound fighter in the featherweight division in 11 rounds at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
Marco Antonio Barrera just didn’t have a chance.
For almost two hours at midday on Nov. 16, Filipinos ignored the problems wracking the country to cheer in front of their television sets as the southpaw Pacquiao battered the Mexican legend with sustained aggression and stylish ringcraft.
It was a conquest that captivated everyone.
While no world title was at stake, Pacquiao installed himself as the hottest commodity in the 126-pound division with his business managers now sifting offers of megabuck fights in the future.
Greater boxer
Indeed, no Filipino fighter has created such a stir in the global arena. A respected columnist, who started his career as a sportswriter, even declared Pacquiao a greater boxer than the late revered heroes Pancho Villa and Gabriel “Flash” Elorde.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, after the usual congratulatory message, came up with a one-million-peso incentive for Pacquiao, whose 350,000-dollar purse (it was later found out he was guaranteed 700,000 dollars) was already the biggest single payday for a Filipino pro athlete.
Manila Mayor Lito Atienza also gave him a condominium unit and the House of Representatives honored the champion with a Congressional Medal of Honor.
Pacquiao had no inkling this would be the biggest year of his life.
After apologizing to sportswriters who grudgingly accepted his alibi of a bum stomach on the eve of the 2003 PSA Awards Night (reports said he really was not feeling well because he lost a big sum during a billiards match), Pacquiao agreed to display his skills before his countrymen in a promotion dubbed “Bakbakan sa Maynila” last March.
Near-misadventures
Organized by Atienza and First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, Pacquiao’s date with an unheralded Kazakhstan fighter, Serikzhan Yeshmangbetov, at the Rizal Park almost turned into a disaster.
Lugging an extra four pounds in his first fight as a featherweight, Pacquiao had to survive a knockdown in the fourth round before escaping with a TKO win in the next round.
It was this near-misadventure as a featherweight that became one of the worries of Team Pacquiao as he prepared for the 29-year-old Barrera, who had 57 victories in 60 fights, 40 of them inside the distance, and was ranked No. 3 in the world’s best pound-for-pound list.
Underdog
While Pacquiao’s record of 37 wins in 40 outings that included 29 KOs was nothing to be sneezed at, the Filipino, who weighed 120 lbs against Lucero, climbed the ring a 3-1 underdog.
This time, however, he was honed to fight for all of 12 rounds by American Freddie Roach, who marveled at how hard the Filipino had whipped himself into shape. And at 125 lbs, all the extra poundage did was add more TNT to the punches of Pacquiao, who delighted his fans no end by dominating Barrera with a non-stop attack that included some rapid-fire shots to the body that one sees only in Fernando Poe Jr. movies.
Sustained barrage
Barrera slowly wilted in the face of the sustained barrage, and when the Mexican’s handlers called for a halt of the carnage in the 11th, Pacquiao shed tears of victory even as the whole nation erupted in celebration.
It was the first time Pacquiao needed to go 11 rounds to put a rival away since winning his first international title, the Oriental-Pacific Boxing Federation flyweight crown at the expense of Thailand’s Chokchai Chockvivat on June 26, 1997.
That alone underscored the quality of the fighter that Pacquiao hurdled.
High school dropout
Born on Dec. 17, 1978 to poor parents Rosseleo and Dionisia, who moved to General Santos City when he was two, Pacquiao was lured to fistfighting by the exploits of Rolando Navarrette, the original Bad Boy of Dadiangas who went on to become WBC super featherweight crown.
Married to Jinkee Jamora and a father of two boys, Pacquiao has a sister and two brothers, one of whom, Bobby, is the reigning Philippine super featherweight champion.
He was 11 when he fought as an amateur, compiling a 64-win, 4-loss record.
A high school dropout at 15, Pacquiao helped his family by working in a bakery before turning pro on Jan. 22, 1995 with a four-round win over Titing Ignacio in Occidental Mindoro province.
It was while fighting several months later in the “Blow by Blow” program in Manila that he caught the eye of Rod Nazario, now his business manager, and trainers Moy Lainez and Lito Mondejar, who later became official members of Team Pacquiao.
Explosive
With his explosive fists, Pacquiao captured the World Boxing Council flyweight title with an eighth-round TKO of Chartchai Sasakul of Thailand on Dec. 8, 1998. He would soon lose the crown to Thai Medgoen Lukchaopormasak due to weight problems on Sept. 17, 1999, but found a new stronghold in the 122-lb superbantam division.
He finally captured the IBF super bantam crown by stopping African Lehlo Ledwaba in the sixth round on June 23, 2001 and retained the title with a technical draw in six rounds against Agapito Sanchez in November.
But the PSA chose billiards ace Efren “Bata” Reyes and woman golfer Dorothy Delasin as its Athletes of the Year for 2001 while giving Pacquiao only the major award in pro boxing. He was a no-show during the PSA awards.
Pacquiao made sure he was around during the PSA Awards last Friday at the Manila Pavilion and the way he hopped from table to table greeting his fans and posing for shots, it was obvious he would be a fixture in future PSA occasions.
