ERIC CANOY: TURNING ADVERSITY INTO VICTORY
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 26 Feb 2008
Canoy (R) blasts Maoja.
Whenever we travel to the Visayas or Mindanao to cover fights for our weekly boxing show ?The Main Event? which continues to move forward thanks to the unstinted support of our loyal friends from Tanduay, the No. 1 Rhum, such as the likeable gentleman Larry Li, it lifts the spirits and warms the heart.
That?s simply because the people from these regions are so genuinely kind and simple, love the sport of boxing and go about their daily lives with a great deal of commitment and hope, unmindful of the ranting and raving of politicians and a handful of fist-clenching clerics in Manila who do irreparable damage to the Catholic Church and erode the faith of their flock by their political posturing and dubious agenda.
Last weekend we were amazed to see no less than 10,000 boxing fans crowd the spacious, air-conditioned Zamboanga City Coliseum to watch hometown boy Eric Canoy win the WBO Oriental featherweight title against Africa?s Rajabu Maoja by a 9th round TKO.
It was not the greatest of fights but behind the fight was a heartwarming story of a former outstanding amateur who had slipped into a life of drugs and despair who was lifted from the depths by a simple, down-to-earth lover of sports and a fine public servant ? Congressman Erbie Fabian.
When Canoy in all his misery went to Fabian who rose from councilor to vice mayor, then to mayor and now to congressman, with his tale of woe, Fabian challenged him to rehabilitate his life and turn it around. Fabian promised to help him but first, he had to help himself and earn the money he was asking for, in the ring.
The rest is a story that should be told over and over again as an example of hope and faith. Because the congressman helped Canoy rehabilitate himself in order to earn a decent living doing what his God-given talents created him for ? to box. Canoy turned professional, won his first six fights and then, through the efforts of well-known promoter Sammy Gello-ani and WBO Asia president Leon Panoncillo who apparently shares his love between the Philippines and Thailand ? earned a title shot.
The crown may not be much, also considering the intriguing question as to how Africa became part of the Orient. But the essential element is that a broken life has been turned around and put to productive use primarily because of Canoy?s own internal strength and the compassion of Congressman Fabian. It was not achieved through dole-outs but a challenge to right the wrong and move on with dedication and discipline. The success that Canoy has achieved and his uncontrolled joy at having won the Oriental title was reflected in his exuberance as he jumped onto the ropes and waved to the fans who cheered the success of their hometown boy..
Deep down within us ? and almost surely within them ? the joy was a manifestation of the thrill of seeing a life that was once on the brink of waste, turning around into one of productiveness. When Canoy rushed to Congressman Fabian and embraced him, it was the kind of picture that reflected the goodness of men and the fact that in Mindanao and the VIsayas there are men ? and women ? who genuinely care for one another and are quietly striving to do their best for individuals and this beloved land with such unbelievable potential.
It is a dramatic contrast in the face of others who do nothing but spend their time seeking to bring down rather than to work together to build, motivated by a lust for power. Indeed, the greatness of our nation in boxing as well as in national life will be anchored ultimately on the people of Mindanao and the Visayas. Its as inevitable as a Manny Pacquiao knockout.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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