PSC-PACQUIAO AMATEUR BOXING CUP QUARTERFINALS IN NAGA CITY
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 25 Feb 2018
NAGA CITY, CEBU - Sixty-two boxers from different towns, cities and provinces competed for the coveted slots in the Visayas quarterfinals of the PSC-Pacquiao Amateur Boxing Cup on February 24-25 at the Enan Chong Activity Center (ECAC) in Naga City, Cebu. The winners will move up to the semifinal round in Calbayog City, Samar.
Commissioner Ramon Fernandez led the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) officials, in coordination with the Office of Senator Manny Pacquiao, in managing the tournament. The referees, judges and technical officials were supervised by technical director Rogelio Fortaleza of PSC Philippine Sports Institute.
The occasion was also graced by Mansueto "Onyok" Velasco who won the silver medal in the light flyweight division during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and a gold medal in the 1994 Asian Games held in Hiroshima, Japan. His older brother Roel Velasco also won a bronze medal in the light-flyweight class at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
The Visayas preliminaries was held in Bago City considered as the ?Boxing Capital of the Philippines? for being the hometown of the Velasco brothers and other Olympic boxers Reynaldo Galido, Isidro Vicera, Leopoldo Cantancio, Roger Ladon, and Larry Semillano.
Teams Omega-Mandaue and Bago City are the top qualifiers with seven boxers each fighting in the two-day quarterfinal contest. Murcia and Victorias City each sent six boxers. Cebu City has five qualifiers, while Cebu City Sports Institute only has one. Escalante has four while the cities of Maasin, Sipalay, Cadiz, Bayawan, and Calbayog each have three quarterfinalists. The Visayas Finals will be held on April 28 in Maasin City, Southern Leyte.
The eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao believes the country could end its medal drought in the Olympics with his partnership with the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) for the PSC-Pacquiao Amateur Boxing Cup. The last time the country won an Olympic medal was by Onyok Velasco's silver in 1996 in Atlanta.
?We will be fighting opponents of the same weight that is why I believe we would win gold in the Olympics soon through boxing. There are lots of good Filipino boxers,? Pacquiao said in a news conference. ?I believe that we can discover good boxers that can compete in the Olympics, SEA and Asian Games through this tournament of the PSC."
Photo: The writer with PSC Commissioner Ramon Fernandez and Olympic silver medalist Mansueto "Onyok" Velasco.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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