By Ronnie Nathanielsz
A long standing racket in boxing has once again been exposed after Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today discovered that the "Tata" Polinar who was knocked out in the fifth round of a WBC Asian Boxing Council super flyweight title fight against Medgoen Singsurat (3K Battery) the former world flyweight champion, was an impostor.
In an overseas telephone conversation with Viva Sprts/ Manila Standard Today, WBC official and Bangkok Post columnist Edward Thangarajah said he was shown a photo copy of the passport of Polinar by the Thai matchmaker Panya Prachakorn which made him believe that there was actually another boxer with the same name. Prachakorn also revealed that the services of Polinar were secured through Benny de la Pena who is a trainer known to work for matchmaker Bong Obero. Games and Amusements boxing division chief Noli Flores said Obero was a former promoter but is now unlicensed.
Upon the prodding , Thangarajah revealed the name and passport number in the photo copy as well as the date and place of birth. They all tallied with that of the real "Tata" Polinar whose first name is Romeo, birth date May 4, 1982 and place of birth Davao, proving conclusively that the fighter who battled Medgoen had, with the connivance of both the Filipino and Thai matchmakers, was a fake.
Flores said he was informed by Japanese matchmaker Joe Koizumi that he had booked the real "Tata" Polinar for a June 4 fight against Manabu Fukushima and was concerned after reports on international boxing websites reported that Polinar who was also overweight, had been knocked out. The manager of the real Polinar, Yolly Alfante said she was preparing a complaint which would be filed with the GAB and wanted the agency to go after the unscrupulous individuals who she claimed have connections with some GAB officials.
Flores said he was informed by Koizumi that a tape of the fight would be sent to GAB which would enable the agency to find out who impersonated Polinar and to take decisive action in the wake of growing instances of such scandalous incidents.
