Sports Eye
Failures
By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.
BOXING: The Mexico-vs-Philippines rivalry in professional boxing continues and the latest victim last Sunday was Fil-Am Ana Julaton. Yes, our only Filipino female professional boxer, former world champion Julaton, was unable to outclass her Mexican opponent Celina Salazar last August 18 in a 10-round super bantamweight fight held in Cancun, Mexico. Ana, now based in Las Vegas, Nevada, is craving for a world title fight against International Boxing Federation (IBF) bantamweight champ Yazmin Rivas on September 15 and the fight will one of the undercards of the Floyd Mayweather-Carmelo Alvarez super welterweight title fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. But her recent setback might change all that and might not get a chance to have a crack at her coveted world title this year. The 33-year old Ana nicknamed “The Hurricane”, who traces her roots in Barangay Villegas, Pozorrubio, Pangasinan, is now down to a 12-4-1 (win-loss-draw) card with two knockouts while the younger Salazar, 24, a resident of San Antonio, Texas, progressed to 6-1-2. It’s possible that Salazar might replace Ana to fight Rivas for the crown. Hopefully I’m not wrong.
It will be Mexico versus PHL again on November 24, pitting Pacquiao versus Rios to be held in Macau, China. This will be the biggest Chicano vs. Pinoy blockbuster inside the ring in 2013. Hopefully it will not be a third straight failure for Pacquiao.
CHESS: Sometimes it’s disheartening to know when our best hope in international competitions suddenly bows out in another world-class tournament. That’s what happened to our most skillful woodpusher Wesley So (my chess idol), crashing out in the World Chess Cup last August 16 (PH time) held in Tromso, Norway. The 19 year-old So from Cavite, the highest ranking chess player that this country ever produced with an Elo rating of 2711, just won the gold medal in the prestigious 2013 Universiade Games last month but failed to maintain his winning trend against the Russians in the first round (unlike his joust in 2009 that lasted as far as the fourth round and second round in 2011). His three failures in three World Chess Cup jaunts were all in the hands of the wily Russians. But let’s face the reality. The Russians, who invented the sport, are more superior and senior to us. But I also believe in ‘major upsets’ just like what So did during the recent Universiade, upsetting all the favourites including some GM Russians.
Lastly, my deepest sympathy to the family of Rudolfo Tan Cardoso for losing him last Tuesday due to heart attack. The last time I met Kuya Rudy was last May 25 during the First Robinsons Place Pangasinan Invitational Chess Tournament in Calasiao. May he rest in peace.
BASKETBALL: The much-awaited opening of the UCAAP (Universities Colleges Athletic Association of Pangasinan) basketball championship was reset anew to September 4 due to the rains brought by Typhoon Maring. Jorge Ceralde, one of the coaches of LNU Dukes texted me last Tuesday night that the Dagupan People’s Astrodome was already made into an education center. Hopefully there will be no more long rains or flood on the first week of September or else a fourth postponement would be unavoidable. We know that the months of July, August and September and even October (remember Typhoon Pepeng, Oct. 8-9, 2009) are the months of the wet and typhoon season so the organizers should have alternative venues. If all Dagupan gyms are not available during a calamity, the Macario Ydia Development Center of Mangaldan is available for only P250 per hour rental, just to ensure that the opening games at least push through. Ceralde also said only UPang-Phinma, LNU and UL are going to participate because the fourth school, AIE, backed out. Honestly, this is the first time that I will ever witness a basketball league with only three teams involved. Of course, automatically the three will stand in the podium, even without victory. What a record. What a shame for the management!
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “You can imprison a man, you can imprison his body, but you cannot imprison his soul.” – Former Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr.
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