Pangasinense is one of boxing referee-judges
IN LONDON OLYMPICS
DANTE de Castro, a native of the island town of Anda, is headed for the Olympic Games in London.
De Castro, a professor at the University of Luzon’s Criminology Department, has been chosen to be one of the 35 boxing referee-judges for the grand sporting event scheduled from July 27 to August 13.
“I am a teacher by heart but I’m also a sportsman,” De Castro, 50, also a two-term municipal councilor of Anda, told The PUNCH in an interview.
He is one of only two three-star referee-judges in the country and is lucky to be chosen as the only Filipino to make it to the London Olympics after a thorough evaluation of his performances in boxing bouts he had officiated.
The other three-star Filipino referee/judge is Rogelio Fortaleza who served in the Beijing Olympics.
A letter received by De Castro from International Boxing Association President Ching-Kuo Wu, says, “As you are now officially an Olympic R&J (referee/judge), you will be one of the AIBA Ambassadors representing the image and reputation of our organization and sport to the world. Therefore, I do want to share that we should all be united to work together to make of the Olympic Men and women Boxing Competitions the most successful competitions ever in the history of the Olympic Games.”
“I sincerely appreciate your great efforts and patience to achieve your personal goal to be in the Olympic Games…,” the letter continued.
De Castro’s love for and involvement in boxing started in the early 1980s through the influence of the late Magno Ventura Cornel, former PUNCH editor and sports aficionado, and lawyer Liberato Reyna who was then the Region 1 regional president of the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines.
KARATEDO ATHLETE
De Castro was a former karatedo national team member and his ambition was to join the Olympics as an athlete.
But since karatedo is not a part of the Olympic events, he never made it, but being named a referee/judge in the London Olympics fulfills his long-time dream.
De Castro was a bronze medalist in karatedo in the15th SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and was a silver medalist in the world championship in the Wado Ryu karatedo held in Lingayen.
De Castro will be accompanying Mark Barriga to London, the lone Filipino boxer who qualified for the games.—Eva Visperas
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