Fair Play: From Pacland to Pinoy Greats

BACK on Nov. 15, 2003, a bunch of guys and I crowded a tiny television , making do with a bad signal, just to catch this unknown Pinoy boxer face off with a Mexican legend at the Alamodome.

It was also about the same time that an enterprising webmaster decided to put up a website in that boxer’s name, to consolidate news, updates about the boxer and to gather all the boxing fans in one site.

Through the years, Dong Secuya’s mannypacquiao.ph and philboxing.com have become a must-go site for fans, boxers and even promoters. Even the world’s top boxers, having seen how much help the site has done in promoting Manny Pacquiao, have also decided to put up their own sites.

I also signed up for the forums, but I rarely posted because I got turned off by the numerous name-calling.

It was funny at first but then it got old really fast.
But I always checked the site regularly because it is where you’d get the latest boxing updates and lately, even news about the other great Pinoy athletes—the Azkals, Dragon Boat team, Efren Reyes and even GM Wesley So.

And, just lately, I was surprised to read an editorial written by Dong Secuya, who said he is giving up the domain because one guy, who is running Manny Pacquiao’s official website, is threatening him.

Poor Dong, after eight years and change, that’s the thanks he gets? It’s the Manny-Pacquiao-official-site or the Internet-highway?

So Manny Pacquiao’s got an official site. Bravo.

But will that site get the same following as Dong’s?

That remains to be seen.

Besides, the cyber world is like the physical world, folks go to places they know or are familiar with—official tags be damned.

So, I’m going to stick with Dong’s. It’s just my simple way of saying thank you for the eight years that he ran mannypacquiao.ph. Besides, Dong is such a likeable guy who doesn’t know how to get pissed even if a sportswriter calls him by mistake like I did a few months ago when I wanted to get in touch with Dongdong, our tech support in the office and instead called Dong.

 “Walay koy Internet Dong!!!!” I yelled.

 “Unsa Mike, wala kay Internet?” Dong meekly asked instead of saying, “And I should be concerned because...?”

And, sticking to Dong’s site is also my Internet version of a thumbs up for what he’s planning to do for the next eight years or more.
 

Dong has decided to transform Pacland from a platform for one great Pinoy to all great Pinoys—athletes or non-athletes.
Pacland is now Pinoygreats.com

From Dong: “Pacland has become a place where Filipino pride is being celebrated on a daily, even hourly basis… has evolved into a broader community where other Filipino endeavors in the world scene, not just in boxing, are now being followed and discussed with a real sense of nationalism and Filipino pride.”

As to Manny Pacquiao’s official site? Well, it will stay on probably, it will have its followers and will have Manny’s blessings but I don’t think it can ever trail-blaze the way Pacland has.

Besides what will that site do after Manny retires?

As to those who will follow Pinoygreats.com, I only have one request.

Cut the name-calling, please.

Once the site was a good venue for discussions but a lot of folks were turned off by the gutter language. Some boxers, promoters and handlers used to check the forums regularly but no longer do that because of the way arguments are settled by who gets to come up with the best new insults.

If you want to be taken seriously, if you want your points to be considered, then treat your forum identity the way you would your real-life identity.

Besides, if the site is going to be a platform for Pinoy Greats, it would be a disservice if visitors get to read all the gutter language in the forum.

To Dong, congratulations and thank you.

To Manny’s official site? Well, you’ll get my congratulations and thanks if after eight years you still exist.