ASSOCIATION of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines president and former sportscaster Ed Picson passed away early morning yesterday of liver cancer, according to ABAP chairman Ricky Vargas.
Vargas said Picson, three months shy of his 70th birthday, died at the St. Luke’s Hospital in Taguig Cit shortly before noon. Vargas said he was at the bedside of Picson the day before he expired.
Vargas stepped down as ABAP president in November 2021, paving the way for Picson, who served as the association’s longtime secretary general, to be elected as the head of the association.
ABAP secretary general Marcus Manalo said Picson kept a low profile while battling the disease “because he wanted to keep this private.”
“He’s a big loss in the sports community. He was the hard-working person in boxing, whether as president, secretary-general or executive director. He’s a friend to all, including the international boxing community,” said Philippine Olympic Committee President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino.
Vargas said he would call an online meeting today among the ABAP board of directors so that House Deputy Speaker Roberto Puno, the ABAP vice president, can assume the presidency, based on the ABAP charter.
“I have already talked to Congressman Robbie, who is willing to assume the post of ABAP president once the ABAP regional directors formally approve the decision,” he said.
He credited Picson for the success of the association and its boxers, who have emerged as a force to be reckoned with in international play.
The most outstanding accomplishment of the association was in the last Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021 when rookies Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio bagged silver medals and Eumir Felix Marcial, also making his Olympic debut, copped a bronze.
Picson is credited for hiring Australian coach Don Abnett, who was the architect behind the success of all three boxers.
Together with Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Hidylin Diaz, it was the country’s most fruitful campaign in the quadrennial sports showcase.
“It was all his (Picson’) doing. ABAP and our boxers would not be here today without him,” stressed Vargas of his trusted lieutenant, who had been with Vargas since 2008.
ABAP was then still known as the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines until it was renamed in 2013 to the Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines, largely through the efforts of Picson.
