In the first in The Good Men Project’s series on renaissance athletes, Phurpa Tsering looks at Manny Pacquiao, whose rise from poverty in the Philippines to worldwide acclaim as a boxer is only one of the many reasons to admire him.
The sublime skills required of a boxer were on display at the highest echelons of the sweet science when Mannny Pacquiao put on a show against Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley back in April. This dominant performance put a stop to all the talk that Pacquiao’s hey day was over. He shall someday enter the Hall of Fame as one of the greatest boxers who ever lived, but until then he will continue to be the champion he has always been.
The million dollar question is what makes Manny Pacquiao great? Is it his stellar record as the only boxer in history to have won world division titles in eight different weight classes or is it the supernatural ability to transform from an almost jovial person outside the ring into a firestorm of a wrecking ball inside it, as he decimates his opponents, chiseling away at their spirits bit by bit with his ballistic left hand, swift as a ballerina footwork, and dizzying hand speed, which remains incredibly intact even at the age of 35.
His sheer athleticism and skill are what make him one of the top pound-for-pound boxers on the planet. But to compartmentalize Manny as just a boxer would be a grave injustice to the man, as what sets him apart is the strength and magnanimity of his character. Manny Pacquiao refuses to limit himself to boxing and has transcended the realm of the sweet science and become a congressman in the Philippines, an actor, a multi-platinum singer, and now soon to be a basketball player in the PBA. It is as if he has consciously formed it as his mission to enforce his will on anything he wishes to do, thus embodying the concept of “living large” and aptly knocking out any form of structural determinism that would otherwise hinder him.
Manny Pacquiao refuses to limit himself to boxing and has transcended the realm of the sweet science and become a congressman in the Philippines, an actor, a multi-platinum singer, and now soon to be a basketball player in the PBA.
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Manny Pacquiao’s rags to riches story is one bordering on legend. He rose from grueling, Dickensian, tin-shanty poverty in General Santos City, a dry-baked region on the Philippine nation’s equatorial bottom, a state where he started fighting at the age of 14 to sustain his family because his father abandoned them after making a meal of the family dog. This is at least partly why he has become a global icon of the 21st century. There is a universal theme to his story, one that never ceases to nuture us with inspiration as it arouses the most humane of emotions, namely hope.
His image is universal, which is why, even as an Indian based in New Delhi, having no connection with the Philippines whatsoever, I can still relate to his incredible story. We see a bit of the best of us in him and he represents perhaps the highest ideal that we could strive to embody. His intangible contribution to the ethos of the Filipino people and all underdogs around the world can never figure in some bland statistical number.
Yet, despite all the riches, glory and fame at his feet, he remains humble in and out of the ring. He behaves now, at the pinnacle of his career, just as he did when he was a nobody. I am always surprised by his ability to maintain his composure in the face of taunts from his trash talking opponents. He has always been this way, a class apart.
His image is universal, which is why, even as an Indian based in New Delhi, having no connection with the Philippines whatsoever, I can still relate to his incredible story.
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However, even Manny Pacquiao is not impervious to flaws and it is a constant reminder to devotees like me that he too is flesh and bone. He has struggled in the past with issues such as gambling and womanizing, but he has been able to confront those issues and deal with them. He has shown an uncanny ability to get up after getting knocked down, either in life or in the ring. After all, champions are not made out of their ability to reach the pinnacle, but whether they get back up on their feet after a fall. Manny Pacquiao has proved all his life that it is possible to stand tall under the direst of circumstances, as it only takes one’s will to do so.
I remember in 2012 watching Juan Manuel Marquez knock Manny out cold with a thunderous right hand in the sixth round, which put Manny on the canvas for a good couple of minutes. I thought the journey for Manny was over, as it was hard even for an ardent believer to think he could ever get back on his feet again and continue to box. But exactly a year later he was back, beating one of the toughest welterweights, Brandon Rios. He had dedicated the fight to the victims of Hurricane Haiyan, which struck the Philippines in 2013.
Pacquiao’s generosity is also something to emulate. He has always contributed to the needs of people worldwide, without borders being a constraint to his generosity, be it helping a fisherman in the Philippines or a cancer patient in America.
When he finally reaches the twilight of his career, Manny Pacquiao will be remembered as one of the greatest fighters in the world. After all, to how many boxers in history can a drop in crime be attributed, as the drop in crime in the Philippines is to Manny every time he fights?
Photo: AP/Reed Saxon
I find any many that is afraid of two guys getting married and kissing pretty silly. Let’s not forget his is a homophobic coward.