Former Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis “Chavit” Singson is asking the lawmakers to always support the national athletes, especially those who are having problems with their respective national federations.
An active sportsman and former president of the Philippine National Shooting Association (PNSA), Singson stressed that the support of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives is essential to the success of the athletes in major international events.
He wants the lawmakers to attend to the needs of the athletes without interfering with the affairs of the national sports associations.
One prime example was the case of former eight-time national champion Maxine Esteban, who was dropped from the national roster by the Philippine Fencing Association (PFA) after suffering an injury in the World Fencing Championships in Cairo in 2022.
When Esteban recovered, the PFA refused to reinstate her, prompting her to leave the country to join the Ivory Coast national fencing squad.
Now, the 23-year-old Esteban had already qualified in the Paris Olympics while the PFA has yet to send an athlete to the Summer Games.
Singson said lawmakers should always be available whenever Filipino athletes need their help.
“We need discipline,” the 82-year-old Singson said in the latest episode of Straight Talk, the weekly talk show of Daily Tribune, last Tuesday.
“Whenever someone makes a report, it is not being attended to. Palakasan pa rin. Sometimes, there are members of Congress who have clout. Let the (NSA) officials resolve the issues among themselves. The government should just be there to support the endeavors of our athletes.”
Now the chairman emeritus of the PNSA, Singson is busy helping young boxers land juicy professional fights. After all, he was once considered as the “lucky charm” of eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao at the height of his Hall of Fame boxing career.
Among the boxers Singson is supporting is Charly Suarez, who represented the country in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016.
Suarez earned the admiration of Singson and his son, Christian, following his hard-fought 10-round win over Yohan Vasquez of the Dominican Republic in their International Boxing Federation Intercontinental junior lightweight match last year.
Suarez, who is being trained by former national team member Delfin Boholst, is set to face unbeaten Henry Lebron at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas on 13 April in a fight that could either make or break his professional career.
Singson said what he is doing is for Suarez’s career. In fact, he is not interested in claiming his share in Suarez’s purse.
“He asked if he could land fights in America. I helped him and told him that everything that he will get there will be his,” the former Narvacan town mayor said, referring to the fight that will lead Suarez to a mouthwatering duel with either IBF super featherweight champion Joe Cordina or World Boxing Organization king Emanuel Navarrete of Mexico.
“Charly won all his 16 fights and he will be up against another unbeaten boxer in the United States.”
