Tenzin Tsomo, Grade 11
UWC Red Cross Nordic
When we are born into this world with its already existing system and history written, your identity starts to form around what you know and what is safe. It is seldom for the elders to encourage the younger generations to step outside of their familiar settings. And when no one encourages you to do so, the journey ahead is undoubtedly a challenging one. One person stands for me, who exemplifies overcoming hardships and the societal chains to go after what we want and achieve it. He is known as Manny Pacquiao.
Born in 1978 to a stricken poverty family. He was born to a life of suffering and destitution. In his family of four children, he had to do extra work to earn money for them and eventually had to drop out of school to help his father sell donuts and bread. In the blur of trying to earn money, he was recruited to box. He earned money from it, and he enjoyed it. It was all he could ask for. Pacquiao soon realized his passion for boxing, and at the young age of fifteen, he went to ‘Manila’ to start his professional career as a boxer. After starting his boxing career, he continued to box, earning numerous titles and awards as he did so. He became known as ‘ the destroyer’ in the boxing world, with his five foot five frame and lightweight body, he came out of matches victorious even when the odds seemed impossible. He is the first person to gain 11 world titles in eight different weight classes and has won 59 professional fights. When it was determined that Pacquiao would fight American boxer Oscar De La Hoya, many observers speculated that Pacquiao was out of his league. De La Hoya had won ten titles in six weight classes and was a former Olympic gold medal winner. At the time, he also outweighed Pacquiao by 20 pounds. When they met in the ring on December 13, 2008, in Las Vegas, the general opinion was that it was a severe mismatch. However, Pacquiao made headlines when he beat De La Hoya in an eighth-round technical knockout.
He grew from a penniless daily wage worker to a multimillionaire boxer. He broke through all rules put on him and showed the world that his worth was not defined by where and how he was born, but through how he overcame those challenges. He is a legend that will inspire generations to come, just like he inspired me. He worked in the face of failure and critics, breaking through it all, and going beyond his limits, he became the definition of plus ultra.
Born in 1978 to a stricken poverty family. He was born to a life of suffering and destitution. In his family of four children, he had to do extra work to earn money for them and eventually had to drop out of school to help his father sell donuts and bread. In the blur of trying to earn money, he was recruited to box. He earned money from it, and he enjoyed it. It was all he could ask for. Pacquiao soon realized his passion for boxing, and at the young age of fifteen, he went to ‘Manila’ to start his professional career as a boxer. After starting his boxing career, he continued to box, earning numerous titles and awards as he did so. He became known as ‘ the destroyer’ in the boxing world, with his five foot five frame and lightweight body, he came out of matches victorious even when the odds seemed impossible. He is the first person to gain 11 world titles in eight different weight classes and has won 59 professional fights. When it was determined that Pacquiao would fight American boxer Oscar De La Hoya, many observers speculated that Pacquiao was out of his league. De La Hoya had won ten titles in six weight classes and was a former Olympic gold medal winner. At the time, he also outweighed Pacquiao by 20 pounds. When they met in the ring on December 13, 2008, in Las Vegas, the general opinion was that it was a severe mismatch. However, Pacquiao made headlines when he beat De La Hoya in an eighth-round technical knockout.
He grew from a penniless daily wage worker to a multimillionaire boxer. He broke through all rules put on him and showed the world that his worth was not defined by where and how he was born, but through how he overcame those challenges. He is a legend that will inspire generations to come, just like he inspired me. He worked in the face of failure and critics, breaking through it all, and going beyond his limits, he became the definition of plus ultra.
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