IF you see Harry Tañamor around, most likely, you will see him wearing a smile like nothing had happened to him.

Something actually happened to him, however. Filipinos—at least 88 million of them—expected Tañamor to have a chance to win a gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

But, to the disappointment of many, he lost in his first bout in Beijing to little-known Manyo Plange of Ghana, 6-2, in the light-flyweight division.

“Ganun lang talaga ako. Pangiti-ngiti lang ako. Sabi nga nila, kahit galit ako, naka-ngiti pa rin. [That is really who I am. I always smile. Some people told me that even if I’m mad, I still smile],” Tañamor told the BusinessMirror.

Tañamor, the lone Filipino boxer in the Olympics, trained in Cuba for months besides training here in the country. The Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (Abap) decided not to field him in the 2007 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Thailand so as to concentrate on the Olympics.

“Sa loob-loob ko, masakit iyong pagkatalo. Hindi nga ako nakatulog (But deep inside, the loss really hurts. I didn’t get enough sleep after the fight),” Tañamor added.

Tañamor felt that he gave Plange a good fight but, unfortunately, his body shots were not credited by the judges. But that is how boxing works sometimes, he said.

“Nagulat pa nga siya na nanalo siya. Pero wala na tayong magagawa. Nandyan na iyan eh [He was even surprised that he won. But we can’t do anything. It already happened and I have to move on],” said Tañamor.

Now, after that loss, Tañamor takes a much-needed break and returns to training in September in Baguio City, where his fellow teammates from the national pool are also training.

“Binigyan nila ako ng break. Active rest tapos next month, aakyat na ako ng Baguio [They gave me an active rest. After that, I’ll go to Baguio],” said Tañamor.

He looks forward to the next big international competition, the 2009 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Laos. The Philippines won a gold medal in women’s boxing but none in the men’s boxing during the 2007 SEA Games in Thailand. Tañamor wants another crack at the gold medal in 2009.

“Sa ngayon, wala pang naka-schedule pero next year, may SEA Games. Maghahanda ako. Talo naman sa akin ang Thailand,” said Tañamor.

Hopefully, Tañamor would flash a smile in 2009 because of a victory.

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