FORMER world title challengers Melvin Jerusalem and Jonas Sultan are stuck in the ALA Gym for the rest of the community quarantine after failing to return to their hometowns before the borders closed due to the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
However, Jerusalem and Sultan, along with a few other amateur boxers, are making the best out of a bad situation by keeping in shape until this global crisis is over.
“I’m left here in the gym with (Jonas) Sultan. We’re staying here in the gym and making the best out of our free time by training,” Jerusalem said. “We’re just doing routine training to stay in shape, so that we’ll always be ready at all times.”
Both Jerusalem and Sultan are from Mindanao. Jerusalem is from Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon, while Sultan is from Tampilisan, Zamboanga del Norte.
“We’re doing okay. We’re still training,” said Sultan. “Working out is what we do for fun.”
The 26-year-old Jerusalem, the No. 1 ranked minimumweight in the World Boxing Council (WBC), occasionally posts pictures and videos of his training on Facebook, which clearly shows an empty ALA Gym. He once did a live video with him and Sultan, along with amateur fighters, doing some conditioning training on their own.
Even without the guidance of their coaches, who are also on community quarantine in their respective homes, Jerusalem and Sultan are making do with what they have by helping each other in training.
“It’s very lonely here, good thing Sultan is here to train with me,” said Jerusalem, who has a record of 15-2 with nine knockouts. “It’s really different without a coach and especially when there’s no sparring. We are just doing conditioning and do what our coaches have taught us.”
Though Sultan is pretty much preoccupied with training and occasionally playing Mobile Legends, he misses his family in these trying times.
“I miss them but it’s okay, the important thing is that they are safe,” said Sultan.
The 28-year-old Sultan was supposed to fight on March 21, 2020 against Ricardo Malajika in an International Boxing Federation (IBF) Inter-Continental super flyweight fight at the Emperor’s Palace in Kmepton Park, Guateng. Sultan and his coach Edmund Villamor already flew to South Africa but was immediately sent home after the fight was canceled.
Sultan, 16-5 with 10 knockouts, hopes that when everything is over he’ll be able to get his shot at Malajika.
“I think the fight will be rescheduled but I still don’t know when,” he said. “I’m a bit sad that my fight didn’t go through but that’s part of boxing.”
Jerusalem, on the other hand, is clinging on to hope that everything will be back to normal sooner rather than later.
“We’ll just keep on praying that this will all be over soon and that the coronavirus will be gone, and that we’ll all be okay.”