I have been on the campaign trail for over 20 years advocating for the banning of boxing–a formidable challenge in a country with a history of nurturing boxing champions–and sports leaders obsessed with winning our first Olympic gold medal. I realize that my personal campaign against boxing which brought me to meet even the late Jaime Cardinal Sin in an attempt to gain his support, is akin to Don Quixote jostling with the windmills. But I never gave up. I am still looking for people who passionately share this fight to protect our youth and children from the potential health risks that boxing poses.
And, happily, in the PhilStar’s issue of Nov 4, 2010, sports columnists and former Chairman of the Philippine Sports Commission, wrote about the “UP College of Medicine Department of Neurosciences organizing an international symposium on ‘Boxing and the Brain: Evaluation and Management of Head and Neck Injuries’ to be held on Dec. 3-4 at the Diamond Hotel. The proceeds from the program will be used to establish the first Asian Brain Bank at the UP College of Medicine and the Philippine General Hospital. The symposium is the first of its kind in the Philippines and Asia.”
Juico further writes: “I’m certain that the position taken by groups like the British Medical Association will surface in the symposium. The BMA position is very simple: since the early 1980’s, the organization has called for a total ban on amateur and professional boxing in the United Kingdom which has produced the likes of heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, Olympic silver medalist Amir Khan (light welterweight), Ricky Hatton (light welterweight, welterweight), Jimmy Wilde (flyweight), Ken Buchanan (lightweight) and Randy Turpin (middleweight)…In article called ‘Boxing — The BMA’s Position’, the organization said that as a first step, there should be a ban on children below the age of consent from boxing.”
The BMA opposition to boxing is based on medical evidence showing risks to both acute injury and chronic brain damage sustained cumulatively during a boxer’s boxing career and it could take several years before ex-boxers will manifest any sign of suffering from brain damage.
“In 1993, the BMA’s report, “The Boxing Debate”, found no evidence to suggest that boxing was any safer in the 1990’s than it was when the BMA began its campaign in the 1980’s. In a new report, “Boxing, an Update from the Board of Science” (Sept. 2007), the BMA extends its call for a complete ban on amateur and professional boxing to include mixed martial arts competitions.
The BMA emphasizes that in 1991, 11 national medical associations added their voice to the opposition to boxing, and expressed their concerns regarding the dangers of boxing believing that ultimately it should cease to exist. The medical associations stated that modern medical technology demonstrates beyond doubt that chronic brain damage is caused by the recurrent blows to the head experienced by all boxers, amateur and professional alike. ‘As long as it is legal to hit an opponent above the neck, there are no safety precautions which can be taken to prevent this damage’”, Juico said.
As early as 1986, the Vatican L’Osservatore Romano, newspaper of the Holy See, proclaimed that boxing is an “immoral sport,” because the object of the protagonists is to inflict corporal damage on the opponent. This view is reiterated in 2005 by the World Medical Association when the members stated that: “Boxing is a dangerous sport. Unlike most other sports, its basic intent is to produce bodily harm in the opponent. Boxing can result in death and produce an alarming incidence of chronic brain injury. For this reason, the WMA recommends that boxing be banned.”
Juico also wrote that “the American Association of Neurological Surgeons report that 90 percent of boxers sustain a brain injury. Boxing may account for fewer deaths than some other sports but the number of boxers suffering brain damage are believed to be much higher than recorded.”
In at least three instances in the past, I have written about my opposition to boxing– especially boxing for children being tolerated by the DepEd in the Palarong Pambansa and Filipino women being fielded in international boxing competition. The American Medical Association claims that “children boxing is plain and simple a form of child abuse” and that anyone tolerating this is guilty of the crime of child abuse. Cuba, a country noted for its boxing program that had produced dozens of Olympic champions will not compete in the London 2012 Olympics, with Jose Barrientos, head of Cuba’s sports federation saying: “We have no intention of participating for the moment in any international competition as we consider this discipline is inappropriate for women.” Likewise, Cuba’s head boxing coach Pedro Roque said that “Cuban women are made for beauty and not to take blows around the head”.
I know that there are many people in our University Town who strongly support boxing. A leading university includes boxing in its PE curriculum. I encourage those who are involved in the promotion of boxing in our locality–medical doctors, managers, boxers and even the PE teachers who are involved in the boxing events of the Palarong Pambansa to attend the symposium. Online registration is available through the following link: http://www.bbraunphils.com/boxingand the brain/.
