Irish Magno and Her Journey to the Olympics

The Philippines has been known as a country that has produced several boxers who turned out to be great. There's the obvious one: Senator Manny Pacquiao who is an eight-division champion on top of being in the conversation as being one of the greatest fighters of all-time. And yes, there's more to Philippine boxing than the Pac-Man himself and that the legendary boxer acknowledges this. Too. 

And while Philippine boxing has already produced boxing greats who punched their way to success particularly in the international scene, not all Filipino boxers are able to hit the target in making it to the Olympics. In fact, we have yet to see Filipina boxer who has punched someone in the Olympics. Fortunately, we are about to witness history come next year's Olympics in Tokyo, Japan as Irish Magno recently cemented her legacy by becoming the first Filipina who will punch someone during the Olympics after beating Sumaya Qosimova in a box-off last March in Amman, Jordan. 

And like any other success stories not just in sports but in life in general, Magno's journey began at the bottom as Magno, who hails from Janiuay, Iloilo, shared that her boxing journey actually began when she was still a fourth-year high school student when she was asked by a cousin if she wanted to train at the plaza. That's where Coach Roger Catholico saw Magno and even asked the latter if she wanted to become a boxer. Understandably, Magno said no to the idea of her becoming a boxer primarily because she thought that boxing was predominantly a sport for men. Then, she eventually decided to give boxing a chance as she thought that boxing might be the answer to her dreams of being able to lift her family from the depths of poverty and from that point on, Magno's boxing career blossomed like a flower as in 2008, she was able to compete in the National Open in Iloilo that became her stepping stone for making it to the national team. And, in last year's Southeast Asian (SEA) Games here in the Philippines, Irish Magno took home a silver medal. 

She remains thankful to her family whom she said supported her career since the very beginning. She didn't also forget to thank her coaches who Magno said without them, she won't be able to stand where she's standing right now: a Filipina boxer who is set to compete in the Olympics. And while she admitted that the ongoing 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic has made it more difficult for her to train with her coaches, Magno reiterated that it's important for her to remain determined and discipline in preparing for next battles. And while she also recognized that her upcoming battles will be more difficult, she said in Filipino that "Nothing is difficult for someone who has a dream. A dream for one's self. A dream for one's family and for a gold medal for the Philippines"  

Photo is from MVPSF