Manny Pacquiao's message after unexpected silver medal win at Tokyo 2020
Despite this success, Param's road to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics has been filled with the same challenges that have dominated much of his life up to that point.
In fact, the 5ft 4in boxer was only able to compete in the tournament after several other qualifiers withdrew due to the pandemic.
But the 23-year-old, the continent's second-ranked fighter, comfortably defeated his first two opponents before shocking the tournament by beating the Olympic, Asian and world champion from Uzbekistan in the quarter-finals. Shakhobidin Zoirov.
Taking advantage of this momentum, Param Yoshiaki Tanaka He received messages of good luck from Filipino boxing legends on social media. Manny Pacquiao.
However, that was not the case for Param and his winning streak ended in a British Galarian Yafai With the decision to split.
Palam won a silver medal in her Olympic debut, joining other boxers in helping the Philippines win the most Olympic medals in history. Hidilyn Diaz (Money), Nesty Petecio (Silver) and Eumiel Marcial (bronze).
“I was a junk collector so this medal is very important to my life. I used to be a junk scavenger and somehow this medal has a symbolic meaning for me,” Param told reporters after the Games, referring to the Tokyo 2020 medals which were partly made from salvaged materials.
“It was made from old tools, but it somehow feels like a connection to me. I never expected to win an award.”
As a result of Palam's success, his life leading up to winning an Olympic medal was dramatized in an episode of the popular Philippine TV show “Maalaala Mo Kaya,” with CJ Nabat playing the role of Palam.
