No choice but to reinvent RP’s Olympic dream

THEY RANKED him the strongest boxing bet for a slot in the 2012 London Olympics. But it’s not very nice what the international amateur boxing body has done to power-punching Charly Suarez, back-to-back gold-medal winner in the Laos Southeast Asian Games and the recent MVP International Friendship Cup. They cut down the 22-year-old pride of Panabo, Davao del Norte, to size. Suarez, a hefty, muscular featherweight, was required to trim down to a juiceless bantamweight. * * * If it’s a joke, it’s not funny at all. OK, Suarez cannot end up wearing a quirky skeletal mask, like the dried-up Harry Tañamor, after the forced weight reduction. But it goes without saying he cannot carry all his bristling power into the bantamweight division. Something’s got to give. Squeezed out, Charly Boy could be left competing in a marathon hotdog-eating contest minus his fabulous chompers. Of course, that’s a little exaggerated. But what remains to be seen is if Suarez will be cozy in the bantamweight backyard, the way he strutted his wares in the featherweight field. * * * Not to worry, trumpeted Barcelona Olympics bronze medalist Roel Velasco, resourceful and imaginative coach of the national elite pool of fighters that will soon fly to the United States for special training. “It’s only a slight adjustment and Charly’s young,” assured Ed Picson, executive director of the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (Abap). Brother Ed said the division slide-down could actually be a blessing in disguise. “He’ll be fighting lighter opponents using the same power against featherweights,” Picson added. * * * It’s all a matter of junking one kilogram of fleshy fierceness from a high-octane punching machine. “Charly will fight in the 56 kg division, because the next will be the 60 kg, where he will be too small,” Picson explained. If in the pros, Suarez—going down from featherweight (126 lb) to bantamweight (118 lb)—would lose a total of eight pounds. However, it doesn’t promise to be that savage and brutal in Olympic boxing. In fact, authoritative handlers of RP’s amateur fighter of the hour have suddenly appeared convinced that Suarez could blossom perfectly as a bantam campaigner. * * * But listen, please. Nearly a year ago, it was not all this cozy for Charly Suarez when he competed—and failed—in the Milan World Boxing Championship, his second major international outing after the 2007 Chicago world tournament. Reminded that featherweight Suarez could perfectly fit as a bantamweight, a top RP team official in Milan readily retorted that there was no use trying. He confirmed, with a tinge of regret, that fast-growing Charly Boy was already having a tough time trimming down to the 57 kg featherweight limit. “He often loses his cool, he gets irksome, nabubugnot, while forcing his system to shed poundage,” explained the same official. OK, it’s too early to tell. At least there’s the forthcoming Asian Games in China where Suarez, currently a top Olympic hope, could be tried as a bantamweight warrior. Win or lose, they will have all the time to reinvent the country’s Olympic dream.