BOXERS RECEIVE PROMISED INCENTIVES FROM ABAP
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 22 Dec 2009
Members of the boxing team to the just-concluded 25th Southeast Asian Games in Laos have already received the incentives promised them by the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines headed by its president Ricky Vargas and chairman Manny Pangilinan, the eminent businessman-sportsman.
The five gold medalists each received P300,000, the lone silver medalist Harry Tanamor got P200,000 and the three bronze medalists P100,000 each while the trainers received P50,000 each for a total outlay of around P2.250 million.
Out of ten boxers who competed in the games only one failed to win a medal as the Philippines finished second to perennial powerhouse Thailand who won seven golds.
Vargas said he was “happy with the performance of our boxers but I still recognize that Thailand is the team to beat and unless we are able to match up or start beating Thailand we’ll not get anywhere.”
The ABAP president noted that Thailand “spends a lot of money on getting foreign coaches, they are well-equipped and there is a lot of government support.”
At the same time Vargas said that “on fairness to our coaching staff they have done wonders especially for the women’s team.”
Vargas said the performance of the boxing team in Laos should be put in proper perspective since the ABAP sent ten boxers and nine won medals which “is not a bad showing.” He revealed that they worked on “building up the confidence of our boxers by spending time with them, praying with them in the dressing room and talking to them about why they were in Laos, what they were fighting for – for their country, for their families and for themselves.”
The ABAP president said he was touched when one of the female boxers told him that she was motivated to win because her mother “has been a domestic helper in Hong Kong for ten years and I’d like to bring her home while another said I would like to repair our home because the roof is leaking.”
At the same time Vargas admitted it was “hard to tell people to fight for flag and country when they have nothing in their stomachs.”
Photo: ABAP President and PLDT/Smart Executive Ricky Vargas.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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