The candidacy of the Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao to the Paris Olympic Games (July 26 to August 11) has been rejected by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the boss of the Philippine committee announced on Sunday.
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Last October Manila sent a “special request” to the IOC to
Pacquiao, 45 years old, winner of numerous world titles in six different weight categories, could put on the gloves again despite being retired and participate in the Games, although a rule sets the age limit for Olympic boxers at 40 years.
On Sunday, the president of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), Abraham Tolentino, declared to the AFP that the request had been rejected, and that the IOC had preferred to stick to its “rules”.
The POC hoped to grant Pacquiao a “universal place”, granted to athletes from countries that have difficulty accessing the Olympic Games through normal classification channels.
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The IOC declared that there are nine of those places for boxing at the Paris Olympics, five in the women's category and four in the men's category. “It could have achieved the podium or been the country's first gold medal” in Olympic boxing, lamented Tolentino, who added that however they had to “follow the rules established by the IOC.”
Manny Pacquiao Sportswear brand Nike canceled the boxer's contract in 2016 due to a gay-related comment. According to El País, from Spain, the athlete said that these people were “worse than animals.” After his statement, Nike spoke out in a statement and called Pacquiao's comment 'abhorrent', arguing that they reject discrimination of any kind.
EFE / Mark Cristino
Pacquiao retired professionally from boxing in 2021 to try in vain to be elected president of the Philippines. Last October, the champion, who has never participated in a Games, told AFP that he was not “too old” to face younger boxers, declaring that he felt like he was “30 or 28.”
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With information from AFP.
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