The cities of London and Manchester were recently graced with the presence of a Philippine sporting hero and the current best pound-for-pound fighter - Manny Pacquiao. This was to be Pacquiao’s first visit to England - “Sa Teritoryo ng Kalaban”.

 

Saturday, 28^th of February was spent up North in Manchester or in Pacquiao’s own words ‘Manny-chester’ to promote the pay per view event to be held on the 2^nd of May. A 6,000 strong crowd of supporters turned up at the Trafford Centre, which created an amazing carnival atmosphere. Pacquiao expressed that he was very surprised and appreciated all the support of the Filipinos in the UK, as he did not expect to see so many of his supporters in Hatton’s home-town. Despite the jet lag, Pacquiao joined Hatton in a friendly game of darts at his ‘local’ after the successful press rally. Afterwards, Team Pacquiao travelled back to London.

 

 

On arrival at Westminster Cathedral on Sunday morning, we were greeted by supporters from The Filipino Club with banners displaying their welcome and pride for the Pacman and who obviously knew that for 10.30am mass, Pacquiao would be joining them. A crowd patiently waited for his coach to arrive, but as soon as Team Pacquiao (with the inclusion of Coach Freddie Roach) stepped off the coach, the excitement from the crowd showed as they shouted ‘Manny, Manny, Manny’. Then as soon as they all caught sight of Pacquiao the rush of the crowd ensued.

 

Regardless of being at a place of worship, the crowd followed Pacquiao into the Cathedral and as he sat, they stood. I felt that they worshipped a different ‘God’ that morning. Even the priest welcomed ‘Manny Pac-kee-yo’ to the congregation. As I sat in on the other side of the cathedral and observed the bystanders, I could see they were in complete awe and adoration for him as they watched his every move. They even approached him for a ‘Peace with You’ handshake moment. When Mass ended, he was escorted out of the cathedral and met by twice the crowd that he was originally met with when he arrived.

 

 

A community event at a nearby hotel for the boxer was his next stop. As patient as everyone was to begin with, as soon as Pacquiao arrived he was mobbed.

 

 

No one wanted to listen to move as everyone again wanted a piece of the boxing legend.

 

 

Those close enough got flags and memorabilia signed, while the rest pretty much huddled for it. The atmosphere was buzzing with excitement but also for some who just watched from the back, were slightly disappointed but still happy to have seen him. Pacquiao soon enough had to leave for some quality ‘sightseeing’ time and rest.

 

 

Finally, Monday 2^nd of March arrived for the London Press Conference. It was a crisp and sunny Monday morning with The Imperial War Museum as the backdrop for much awaited ‘Battle of East meets West’. In attendance were Filipino, British and American press, the Philippine Embassy and of course… more Pacman supporters.

 

The Imperial War Museum captured the significance for Pacquiao’s fighting pride, as Bob Arum (Top Rank promoter) explained. “The Philippine army never surrendered throughout World War II and fought the Japanese army to a standstill… Manny represents the heart and spirit of the Filipino people… It’s hard for you to imagine what Manny Pacquiao means to the 90m people in his country… There’s been insurgencies that have been going on for 40 years, and the day Manny fights there’s a truce between the government and the guerrillas, everyone lays down their guns.”*

 

 

Apart from the promotional aspect of the upcoming fight, Pacquiao also revealed an insight into the hardship of his childhood and also how he began his career as a boxer at 12 years old. His first payment was 50 pesos, of which he gave to his mother to pay for food. In contrast, after the bout with Hatton, he will be paid $12 million. Pacquiao is well known for his generosity, as he gives much of his money back to the people of his home town in General Santos City.

 

 

After managing to sneak a brief chat and photo op with the Pacman, he was then hurried along to make his appointment at the Philippine Embassy, London. The atmosphere yet again was slightly crazy but all in good jest. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the guy who screamed ”I love you Manny, please sign my shorts!” Absolutely hilarious.

 

{Can you spot the Pacman in amongst the mob-squad?}

 

Filipino communities in London and Manchester have been gripped by PACMANIA! I have not seen anything like it. I attended a meet and greet for a group of well-known Filipino artistas, and the reception they received does not come close to the Pacman’s grand welcome.

 

Pacquaio recently wrote on his website that he felt victorious about the promotional aspect of the short tour in England, but was also apologetic for not being able to have as much time to speak with his supporters. Keep in mind, he did not anticipate how big a fan base he had over here, until now ;)

 

What a manic two days of following this boxing legend, but I can well and truly say that I’ve been KO’d by the Pacman’s sincerity and charm!

 

Were you? Let your comments be known!

 

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P.S. Belated Happy Birthday for yesterday, Coach Freddie

 

 

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*  BBC Sport / Ben Dirs blog

Posted on 6 March 2009 by Lani in Featured, Sport

Tagged boxing, filipino support, manchester, manny pacquiao, pacman, ricky hatton