CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Following various achievements here and abroad, Olympian and 32nd Southeast Asian Games boxing gold medalist Carlo Paalam expressed hope that “more Cagayan de Oro boxers” would represent the country in international competition, notably the Olympics.
OLYMPIAN and 32nd Southeast Asian Games boxing gold medalist Carlo Paalam answers questions from the media after a press conference at the Cagayan de Oro City Information Office  on Friday, May 19. (Franck Dick Rosete) Paalam said he is seeing the potential of the Kagay-anon boxers, and at the same time acknowledged the admirable boxing program in this city, stressing that some countries have visited Cagayan de Oro for boxing training. "Klaro gayud kaayo nga daghan kayo maayo nga boxer dinhe sa Cagayan…Grabe gayud ang Cagayan sa dungog sa boxing (It’s very clear that there are many of the best boxers here in Cagayan (de Oro City)…Cagayan (de Oro City) has a good reputation in boxing),” Paalam said during a press conference at the City Information Office on Friday, May 19. Paalam was born in Bukidnon but when he was six-years-old, he and his father transferred to Cagayan de Oro to search for better opportunities. He worked as a scavenger at a landfill in the city. It was his neighbor who encouraged him to join a local tournament known as "Boxing at the Park" after seeing him in a backyard boxing match. He won his first boxing match at age seven and used his winnings to buy rice for his family. Nobody ever thought that it was already a launching of Paalam’s boxing career that would also see him represent the country in the world’s biggest stage, the Olympic Games. Paalam bagged a silver in men’s flyweight division during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. In the last 32nd SEAG in Cambodia, Paalam won the gold medal in the 54-kg bantamweight division by beating an Indonesian foe in the finals on May 14. Two other Kagay-anons, boxer Markus Cezar Tongco and Kun Khmer artist, Moises Ilogon, also gave pride to the city as they came up with podium finishes in the biennial meet. Tongco settled for bronze medal in the 92-kg heavyweight division despite his lack of experience, while Ilogon also took home a bronze medal in the 60-kg category of Kun Khmer, a Cambodian martial art, in SEAG. A former basketball varsity player at Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan, Tongco turned to boxing as he looked for a sport that could maintain his fitness after his injury and that continuing basketball wasn’t an option during those times due to the threat of Covid-19. "I was training with them, and the national team saw it, and of course, with that kind of height and weight, I was the only one, and they tried to develop me," Tongco said in a mix of English and vernacular in the same conference. Apart from getting the bronze medal, Tongco also made history as he became the first Filipino athlete to represent the country in the SEA Games men’s boxing 92-kg heavyweight division, said Elmer Pamisa, head coach of the CDO Amateur Boxing team. Romarey Gorro, officer-in-charge of the City Sports Office (CSO), said there are currently in-house boxing players at the training center of the CDO boxing team in Barangay Lumbia, and they are fully supported by the city government. Meanwhile, when it comes to scouting players, not just in boxing but also in other sports, the CSO continuously joins the “Klarex nga Serbisyo sa Baryo,” where the city government visits every barangay in this city to provide city hall services. CSO used the event as an opportunity to find players who have the potential to become athletes. Scouting potential athletes is also one of the focuses of the CSO, so that many Cagayan de Oro players will represent the country in various international sports competitions. Gorro said Kagay-anons who bagged medals in the 32nd SEA Games will receive cash incentives, with gold medalists to receive P30,000, silver medalists P20,000, and P15,000 for bronze medalists. Paalam and Tongco thanked the national government for taking care of Filipino athletes in Cambodia. They also thanked the city government of Cagayan de Oro for its support.