Pacquiao off to London
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 03 Nov 2018
In his 23 years of prize fighting career, Philippine pride Manny Pacquiao has fought the best 69 fighters in eight weight divisions, winning 60 of those on the way to becoming the only man to capture 11 word titles in the flyweight to super-welterweight classes.
The soon-to-be 40-year-old Filipino?s exploits atop the squared arena captured the imagination, not only of the entire sporting world, but, likewise, of the intellectuals comprising London?s Oxford University and Cambridge University debating societies.
The once ?Fighter of the Decade' honoree of the Boxing Writers Association of America now senator, thus, became too, the first Filipino athlete to be accorded such honor.
"It?s a great honor and privilege to have been invited to speak and meet officials and students of these institutions of higher learning,? Pacquiao said in Filipino hours before his departure for Britain?s capital Friday.
"I sure will treasure more these moments where I can share my story and my culture, as well our country?s and people?s to the youths, not only in the UK, but the world as well.?
Pacquiao and his party of eight were scheduled to depart Friday evening and will momentarily take a leave of absence from his light training schedule in preparation for his coming fight with American challenger Adrien Broner at a date and place still to be decided middle of this month.
The Oxford affair is on November 5 (November 6 in Manila) to be followed by the Cambridge event the day after (November 7 Manila time).
Pacquiao retuns back to Manila on November 8 before enplaning do the US a week following for the two-city tour in New York and Los Angeles to promote his fight with Broner.
The final date of the fight and where it?ll be held will be announced during the New York leg of the tour, were the press conference will also take place, the fighter?s chief legal counsel, lawyer Tom Falgui told this writer.
The Oxford Union is no stranger to hosting boxers, with the annual Town vs Gown Boxing event taking place in the Debating Chamber, which is organised by the Oxford University Amateur Boxing Club.
Stephen Horvath, President of the Oxford Union, has said that Pacquiao?s presence will continue the ?fine tradition? of the hosting of high profile speakers from across the world.
He added: ?As the first and only eight-division world champion and the winner of 11 world titles, your legacy as a world champion professional boxer is unmatched.?
?At a time where there is such international interest in the politics of the Philippines, our members would be intrigued to hear more about your views on President Duterte and the war on drugs. On top of your success in politics and boxing, it is impressive that you are so involved in basketball as a player, owner and coach. We would be truly honoured to host you and learn from your immensely rich life.?
Nick Brown, Secretary of the Oxford Union, who forwarded the initial invitation to Pacquiao, has said that ?it would be an honour to host Sen. Pacquiao and hear him discuss his career, both about his epic boxing journey and his career in Filipino politics, something which many of our members are watching closely.?
He added that Pacquiao?s talk at the Union will be ?a fantastic highlight of our termly program.?
Photo by Wendell Alinea.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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