Retired eight-division professional boxing champion Manny Pacquiao reiterated his desire to compete for the flag in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The former senator is serious about exploring a return to the boxing ring but this time shooting for the country’s first-ever gold medal in the sport.
“Waiting for that. I’m excited for that,” the 44-year-old boxing icon said during the formal launch of his latest sports project Maharlika Pilipinas Volleyball Association yesterday at the Sheraton Hotel.
Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino bared last month that Pacquiao reached out to him and expressed his interest in a crack at the Summer Games.
Tolentino said that the POC and the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines along with the International Olympic Committee are currently discussing the matter.
Pacquiao has a couple of options to fly to Paris. The first is through two Olympic qualifying tournaments early next year.
Another is through the IOC Universality rule where nine slots, four in men and five in women, are available.
An easier path would be the Hangzhou Asian Games but Pacquiao is already past the age restriction of 40 years old.
“From the beginning, I went to Manila with the hopes of joining the Philippine team. But I was rejected because they said I didn’t have the talent for it. So, I decided to turn pro at the age of 16,” Pacquiao, who decided to hang his gloves in 2021 when he filed for a presidential bid, said.
“But from the very beginning, my dream and desire is to win a gold medal in the Olympics,” said Pacquiao, who lost a 12-round decision to Cuban Yordenis Ugas in his last pro fight in August 2021 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Since retiring, Pacquiao hasn’t fought but figured in an exhibition in Korea late last year.
The Olympics started accepting pro boxers in the Summer Games back in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro.
