By Oliver Suarez, Fight Hype
In an article by Manny Pacquiao at Philboxing.com, he expressed his sentiments regarding the accusations of steroids that were undeservingly put upon him.
Manny Pacquiao stated, in his native language, that he will not be held hostage by shallow talk and accusations regarding his supposed use of steroids and performance enhancing drugs. According to Pacquiao, he filed the lawsuit against the accused because they destroyed his good reputation and he is hoping that those who abused their ‘freedom of speech’ by spouting baseless accusations will pay a high price.
One of the hardest working boxers in the sport, Pacquiao has worked hard to get where he is and for someone to take that away without furnishing any evidence is irresponsible. What is more troubling is when some of his colleagues basically accused or implied that Pacquiao must be on something without holding any substantial proof, especially when they know how the steroid issue can tarnish an athlete’s reputation. I will not even mention their names since publicity is probably the only thing that they were after.
When Jose Canseco accused Mark McGwire and Alex Rodriguez of using steroids, he either had hard or circumstantial evidence. He had said that he injected McGwire with steroids when they were teammates and introduced Rodriguez to a known steroid supplier. In fact, in other sports, you don’t hear other athletes admonish or link their colleagues to steroids until hard evidence is found.
One can even argue that it’s the same way in boxing and Pacquiao is only being singled out. It’s laughable when some imply that Pacquiao’s legacy is now tarnished, yet at the same time, rave about the accomplishments of other boxers who have been linked to steroids, such as Shane Mosley.
Pacquiao also mentioned that he, along with his team, planned to be quiet since the lawsuit is already in court and that he believes that justice, similar to God, whom he credits for strength and courage, does not sleep.
But word of the ‘email’ scandal had reached him and he specifically mentioned the incident during ESPN’s Friday Night Fights when Teddy Atlas informed the viewing audience that a ‘reliable’ source informed him of an email, sent by a member of Team Pacquiao, that had been sent to the camp of Mayweather, which asked the latter camp if the results can be kept a secret if Pacquiao somehow tested positive for banned substances. Pacquiao further mentioned that he tried to ignore it, but he cannot stomach such malicious journalism.
Pacquiao assured everyone that no one on his team was behind this ‘email’ scandal that Teddy Atlas and Tim Smith had reported. According to him, it must have been created or invented by someone with a malicious mind and character. Also, he was bothered by the fact that no one thought of the fact that anyone can make a fake email address in order to impersonate someone and damage a person’s character.
He also mentioned that it must be a trend to judge someone even before talking to all the people involved so that each party that will be affected can give their opinion or position on the matter. Would it have been such a difficult task for Atlas to place a phone call to Freddie Roach or other members of Team Pacquiao to get their side of the story, considering the large number of viewers that a network of ESPN’s magnitude can attract? Teddy could have still told the viewers about the email, but also could have given Team Pacquiao’s side of the story.
Pacquiao also alluded that he is saddened that many have already crucified him as guilty until he proves himself innocent when it should be the other way around and as a result, Pacquiao in his article, stated, “Ngayon, hinahamon ko sila Smith at Atlas, kasama na rin ang ESPN, na ilabas nila ang mabaho nilang ebidensiya, para na rin sa hustisya, kung may respeto pa sila sa kanilang mga sarili at kung may tunay silang professional etiquette. Dahil kung hindi, habambuhay ko silang tatawaging sinungaling.”
Translation:
“Now, I challenge Smith, Atlas along with ESPN to show their evidence for the sake of justice if they have any respect left for themselves and real professional etiquette. If not, then I will call them liars as long as I live”
The steroid issue is obviously troubling Pacquiao more than previously thought, but it is also evident that he will not be bullied and content enough within himself that he’s achieved the pinnacle of his sport by doing it the right way. So, as Ed De La Vega of Philboxing.com said in one of his previous article, let the burden of proof be on the accusers.
Source: boxing.fighthype.com
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