PH collegiate sports

‘Mini Pacquiao’ beats odds, slays giant in Palaro

Myke Miravite

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Mini Pacquiao is in Dumaguete and he's in the form of a 4-foot-2 boxer from Cebu.

IN TEARS. Lariosa was in tears after beating a bigger foe. Photo by Rappler/Myke Miravite.

DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines — Right after the bell rang, Cebu’s John Mark Lariosa raised his hands in the air, crying as he acknowledged the crowd who rooted for him throughout the fight.

It was like a scene cut straight from replays of Manny Pacquiao’s victory celebrations. And for good measure, the pint-sized boxer knelt at one corner when he reached the dugout and prayed.

In his first Palarong Pambansa bout, the young fighter off Talisay City faced a taller and bigger foe from Western Visayas. It was like David versus Goliath in the boxing ring and the large crowd at the jampacked Robinson’s Place Dumaguete was easily amused.

Lariosa, 12, could easily be mistaken as a scrawny schoolboy for his size. But do not make his looks deceive you as he has already dispatched many bigger opponents in the past.

“We’re used to fighting bigger foes,” Lariosa’s coach Snech Aldave told Rappler. “We know how hard John Mark trains that’s why we know that he can do it.”

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Not just Pacquiao, but Onyok, too

Fueled by the cheer from the Dumaguete crowd, Lariosa took on his foe like the guy was his own size. When the bell sounded, everyone witnessed that the kid is not just easy picking in the tournament. The boy — all 4 feet and a couple of inches of him — is the real deal.

The Cebuano youngster is like a redux of Olympic silver medalist Onyok Velasco. He moves like wind on the mat and punches like tornado. His incredible footwork makes him invisible to his foes. And after 3 rounds of boxing, he was declared the winner.

It was a dramatic match that movies are made of. When the referee raised Lariosa’s hand, the jampacked venue erupted in applause.

“I was afraid,” admitted Larosa. “But I followed my coach’s instructions that’s why I won.”

LIKE MANNY. Like the Pinoy boxing icon, Lariosa knelt down and prayed after winning. Photo by Rappler/Myke Miravite.

Boxing at 9 years old

In the south where boxing is almost a religion and the poor resort to it as a ticket out of poverty, stories of inspiration and determination are not rare in this part of the country, and Lariosa’s story is not a different one.

The son of a construction worker and a housewife, Lariosa started boxing three years ago in barangay tournaments in his hometown.

“I started small. I played in pocket tournaments in our town,” Lariosa, the eldest among five siblings, said.

He quickly rose to ranks when he represented Maghaway Elementary School in the local school meets. When he reached the Palaro-qualifying contest, the Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association in the same venue last December, Lariosa dominated a bigger opponent from Mandaue to top the 32-kg. division, despite weighing 2 kilos less than his counterparts.

“It’s a disadvantage that he’s small in size but we really focused on training hard,” Aldave said about his young, but already prized fighter. “We train in the morning and in the afternoon. John Mark worked hard to erase his size disadvantage.”

Patak-patak for gloves, gear

The self-confessed Pacquiao-fan, like his idol, also comes from a humble household. Fortunately, his coaches, whenever they have extra cash, shell out money from their own pockets.

“We don’t get enough support,” said one of his coaches. “That’s why we have to find ways to sustain our training.

For Lariosa, like many other young people from their area, boxing is his gateway to success.

“I will box forever,” he said. “This is what I want to do until I grow up.”

When asked to whom he is dedicating his fights to, Lariosa, without a single thought, answered “Papa.”

Although the elder Lariosa was not present in his son’s debut in the biggest sporting event in the country, his three coaches treat him as their own son.

As a matter of fact, they have been training here in Dumaguete for the past three weeks already.

Lariosa will be taking on his quarterfinal opponent Wednesday, but his handlers are not fazed. Whether another Goliath will be on the other side of the ring or not doesn’t bother them a bit.

For Lariosa, size is nothing. It’s the heart that does matter. – Rappler.com

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