AS far as the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines (ABAP) is concerned, Carlo Paalam hasn’t mentioned anything about possible plans of turning pro after the Tokyo Olympics.
Will Carlo Paalam turn pro?
ABAP Secretary-General Ed Picson said he doesn’t know yet what the future holds for the 23-year-old Filipino, who clinched the silver medal in men’s flyweight class of the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday following a 4-1 split decision loss against Galal Yafai of Great Britain.
“Wala kaming pinag-uusapan na ganun,” said Picson in a special edition of SPIN.POV. “Wala pa akong nararamdaman or ipinararamdam si Carlo or any of the people behind him.”

Picson said ABAP won’t stand in the way should Paalam decide to turn pro especially now that open boxing has been a norm in the Olympics.
He cited the case of middleweight Eumir Marcial, who is now a pro but still represented the country in the Tokyo Games, where he managed to bag a bronze medal.
“This decision I really leave to the boxers,” said the ABAP official. “Like when Eumir asked me, sabi ko nasa sa iyo yan. Nasa edad ka na naman, and alam mo na kung ano yung ginagawa mo.”
The good thing is that Paalam’s benefactor is Cagayan De Oro Mayor Oscar Moreno, a big supporter of the ABAP program.
“He (Moreno) is one of our (ABAP) board members, and sampalataya yan sa amateur boxing,” said Picson.
Paalam’s talent and technical skills in the ring easily makes him perfect fit for the pros, which past Olympians use as vehicle in achieving superstardom in the sport.
Yafai alone has already attracted interest from British promoter Eddie Hearn, chairman of Matchroom Sports, who handles several of boxing’s current big names led by reigning heavyweight three-belt title holder Anthony Joshua.
Two of Yafai’s brother Kal and Gamal are both pro fighters.
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