Barriga, Suarez to stay in PSC list

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Sports Commission is not dropping the axe on Mark Anthony Barriga and Charly Suarez even if the two boxers have been ruled as pro athelets by the Games and Amusements Board.

Chairman Richie Garcia said Barriga and Suarez may remain as priority athletes as long as they make themselves available for international competitions like the SEA Games, Asian Games, World Championships at the Olympics.

“We are concerned that when the time comes that we need them (Barriga and Suarez) they are not available,” Garcia said.

There are other athletes in the priority list who are professionals, like the billiards or tennis players. They get to compete for money overseas and at the same time receive allowances from the PSC.

“That is what we are looking at. What’s the difference between them,” Garcia told The STAR yesterday.

“The only thing is that these billiards players play in the SEA Games. The two boxers are not even included in the list,” the PSC chief added.

The PSC is concerned that the two boxers may end up skipping more international tournaments because of their commitment with the APB while they continue receiving huge allowances from the government.

Priority athletes like Barriga and Suarez receive monthly allowances of P40,000 from the PSC. But because of the recent GAB decision, there were suggestions that they should be removed from the priority list.

Barriga and Suarez, medalists in the SEA Games and Asian Games, recently signed five-year contracts with AIBA Pro Boxing  (APB), a tournament among the top 80 amateur boxers in the world and which runs on a yearlong calendar.

The APB commitment forced the two boxers to skip the SEA Games in Singapore in June. The PSC and the Philippine Olympic Committee rued the fact they were not informed by the Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines beforehand.

Because the APB boxers are under contract and receive guaranteed purse for each fight which goes from six, eight to 10 rounds, GAB chairman Ramon Guanzon said Barriga and Suarez have turned professional, and are now required to secure GAB licenses for them to join APB events.

However, ABAP president Ricky Vargas maintained that the APB is not a professional event because APB boxers are not run by managers and promoters but by their respective national federations.

The APB, Vargas added, is an AIBA event, and in fact serves as one of the qualifiers for the 2016 Rio Olympics. At the same time, he said they have other boxers who can win medals in the SEA Games.

“We have trust and confidence in our boxers. And we take full responsibility for our choices for the SEA Games,” Vargas also said.

Garcia said things could have gone on smoothly if only ABAP informed them way ahead that Barriga and Suarez were joining the APB and would not be available for the SEA Games.

“The difference here is we were not informed – like we do not exist,” said Garcia.