Reigning Southeast Asian (SEA) Games featherweight titlist Charly Suarez could’ve won the gold medal at the recent “Champion of Champions” tournament in Beijing.
That’s how Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) secretary-general Patrick Gregorio sized it up after Suarez’ Laos semifinal victim Masuk Wittichai of Thailand outpointed China’s Li Yang, 2-0, for the gold medal in the two-day blitz competition that gathered four crack fighters in each of five weight divisions as a warm-up for the Asian Games in Guangzhou this November.
ABAP executive director Ed Picson tried to include Suarez, a five-time National Open gold medalist with Tony Boy Floirendo’s boxing team from Panabo City, in the Beijing cast but was denied by organizers.
The Philippines wouldn’t have been represented at all in Beijing if not for a last minute back-out in the 48-51 kilogram category, bringing in 2008 World Cup champion Harry Tañamor as a replacement.
The tournament invited only the top four ranked fighters in Asia in the flyweight 48-51, featherweight 57, welterweight 69, middleweight 75 and lightheavyweight 81kilogram divisions. Tañamor, rated No. 7 in Asia, wouldn’t have qualified under the guidelines but was accommodated as a late substitute.
Tañamor, coach Elmer Pamisa and referee-judge Tito Dacuma went to Beijing for the competition. Gregorio and Picson also flew in to witness the action.
For Tañamor, it was a test of survival. The 32-year-old veteran of two Olympics and five World Championships is nearing the end of his storybook amateur career. At the Laos SEA Games last year, Tañamor lost to Thailand’s Kaew Pongprayoon on a 3-1 verdict in the finals and the defeat triggered speculation that he may be on the way out of the national pool.
Another veteran Joan Tipon, who failed to bring home a medal from Laos, is reportedly considering to hang up his gloves and accept an offer to join Jay-Jay Vargas’ Mandaluyong amateur squad as a coach. Vargas has also expressed interest in recruiting Tañamor as a coach alongside Tipon.
Tañamor had to make a respectable account of himself in Beijing to stay with the ABAP pool.
Unfortunately, Tañamor was pitted against old nemesis Zou Shiming in his first do-or-die bout in Beijing. There couldn’t be a tougher foe than the 28-year-old Shiming who was coming off a two-year layoff after pocketing the lightflyweight gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He had previously claimed the bronze at the 2004 Athens Games. China’s first Olympic boxing gold medalist is also a two-time world champion.
In four previous meetings, Shiming had beaten Tañamor thrice. The Filipino managed a win on points in a tournament in Ireland but Shiming was dominant in outclassing Tañamor, 21-13, at the 2003 World Championships in Bangkok and 17-3 at the 2007 World Championships in Chicago. Shiming had also beaten Tañamor at the 2004 Asian Championships in Puerto Princesa.
To add to his collection, Shiming bagged a gold at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha where Tañamor did not participate due to a suspension in a disciplinary measure by the ABAP.
Tañamor never had a chance against Shiming in Beijing. Shiming raced to a 5-2 lead in the first round then coasted to a comfortable 11-3 win.
“Harry put up a good fight but was outwitted and outfought,” said Picson. “The Chinese crowd went wild. Suddenly, it got even colder in the stadium as outside, the temperature was below zero. Zou threw power combinations while Harry, single shots. The Chinese was fast and accurate and the crowd support didn’t hurt either.”
Shiming went on to pocket the gold, beating Tañamor’s Laos tormentor Pongprayoon, 6-3, in the finals.
But the big surprise was Masuk’s entry in the featherweight division despite his loss to Suarez in Laos. The bigger surprise was Masuk’s victory over Li, a hometowner, for the gold medal.
“If only the organizers allowed Charly to participate as we suggested, we might have won a gold medal,” said Picson.
Gregorio said Suarez would’ve repeated over Masuk for sure if they had met in Beijing.
“Charly’s our man,” said Gregorio. “This was a good time to gauge our opponents in Asia. It was China’s way to give their fighters exposure and a dry-run for the Asian Games. Ed and I met with Richard Gouzheng, executive director of the Asian Boxing Federation, to discuss a possible Philippines-China boxing tie-up and to review the 2010 Asian boxing calendar.”
Li was no pushover. He was a bronze medalist at the 2007 World Championships and represented China at the 2008 Olympics, losing to Brazil’s Robson Conceicao on a 12-4 decision in his only outing. But Li couldn’t score a point against Suarez’ victim.
Suarez, 22, is one of the country’s best bets for a slot in the 2012 London Olympics. An only child who took up boxing at an early age for self-defense to fend off bullies, Suarez was the Philippines’ top performer at the World Championships in Milan last September. His dream is to fight in the Olympics and win the P12 million bonus pledged by ABAP chairman Manny V. Pangilinan for the boxer who brings home a gold medal.