ABAP backs Batang Pinoy

MANILA, Philippines - The Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines, the national sports association for amateur boxing in the country, has pledged active participation in the Batang Pinoy program of the Philippine Sports Commission.

“We recognize the impact of this grassroots development program in flushing out young talents in the countryside,” said ABAP executive director Ed Picson.

The Visayas leg of the talent search starts Monday in Maasin, Southern Leyte with boxing as one of the featured sports which aim to discover young talents in the tournament open to athletes 15-years-old-and-under.

Picson met with PSC executive director Guillermo Iroy Jr. recently to map out plans to further boost the tournament.

“With the Youth Olympic Games looming, we need to discover and train more young kids as soon as possible,” said Picson.

He also stressed that the new AIBA technical rules will be applied in Batang Pinoy to see to it that boxers are familiar with the new rules as early as now.

The AIBA has enforced the 10-point must system in scoring. Head guards have been done away with in the elite (19-40 years old) category but will stay in the women’s, youth and junior categories.

The second staging of the Youth Olympics will be held August next year in Nanjing, China.