A boxer copes with HIV diagnosis
Junior featherweight Leocadio Manon tested positive for HIV before a scheduled April 9 fight. The Dominican's bout was canceled, his license suspended and his life left in limbo.
Leocadio Manon is like most professional boxers. He trained diligently and hoped to go as far as he could in a tough sport while earning enough money to support his family.
The difference, however, is that on the eve of his first fight in the United States – one scheduled to be nationally televised on pay-per-view April 9 – he tested positive for HIV during a routine, pre-fight blood test.
Manon's bout was canceled, his license suspended and his life left in limbo.
"This is his real fight now. This is not a 10- or 12-rounder," said Rosa Diaz, Manon's agent, mother figure and the one who broke the news to him that his blood work had come back positive for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. "This will be his real championship fight."
| Leocadio Manon: The Fight Ahead |
|---|
|
• Rafael: Manon's biggest fight • Rafael: Morrison's advice • Rodriguez: Manon speaks • Rodriguez: Manon's lifelines here and at home • Rojas: D.R. boxing commission's stand • Manon gallery | ESPNdeportes.com |
Having earned very little money fighting in his native Dominican Republic, where he won the national flyweight title in 2004, Manon gained a work visa to train in Miami at the gym run by Diaz and her husband, Pedro Valerio. They handle about 30 boxers, mainly Latinos, and began working with Manon about two years ago.
Manon, 28, had fought all of his bouts in the Dominican, compiling a record of 12-4 with seven knockouts. But with a visa secured, Diaz and Valerio brought him to Florida, where they hoped to take his career to a higher level. He had shown promise, winning 10 consecutive bouts after losing four of his first six.
Manon accepted the April 9 fight on three days' notice. He was in New Jersey assisting Diaz with one of her other fighters when the call came. It was Wednesday and Golden Boy Promotions matchmaker Eric Gomez was in a tough spot. He needed an opponent immediately.
Junior lightweight champion Marco Antonio Barrera was headlining an HBO PPV card in El Paso, Texas, against Mzonke Fana. Junior featherweight Abner Mares, a 2004 Mexican Olympian and one of Golden Boy's hottest prospects, was to be featured on the televised undercard in his third professional bout. However, his opponent was forced to back out when he encountered visa problems and could not get into the country.
That sent Gomez scrambling.
"I was told about this kid Manon a while back by an agent [Diaz] I use in Florida," Gomez said. "I had not seen a tape, so I went on a hunch. I asked people who had seen him fight about him. He was a solid little guy, but really a 115-pounder. But he was willing to fight Abner at 122, so I made the fight."
Gomez called Diaz to arrange the match and asked if she could have Manon in El Paso in time to fight Saturday night.
For Manon, this was the break he dreamed about. Although he would be fighting as a junior featherweight, some 10 pounds heavier than where he had won his country's national title, it was going to be by far his best payday: $5,000 for a scheduled six-round bout.
"The kid was so happy because of the money he was going to make," Gomez said. "It was so big for him after making nothing fighting in the Dominican."
Diaz said Manon was also excited about being on a big card, meeting show promoter Oscar De La Hoya and having his fight on TV.
Because time was short, Diaz took Manon to get his blood work done in Philadelphia Thursday before they left for El Paso. Testing fighters for hepatitis and HIV before bouts is required in major boxing states like Nevada, New York, Texas and California. But until recently, the Dominican Republic, where Manon fought 16 times between 1997 and 2004, did not require blood work.
Diaz's other fighter boxed in New Jersey Thursday night, and the next morning she and Manon were on a flight for El Paso. Shortly after arriving, Manon was taken for his pre-fight physical and eye exam. In the meantime, Gomez awaited the lab results on the blood tests taken in Philadelphia.
On Friday afternoon, Manon went to the weigh-in and made the contract weight – 123 pounds on the nose. Gomez had already received results from the eye tests and a partial blood test result – Manon's hepatitis tests came back fine. The HIV test would take a little longer.
"That night a bunch of us were having dinner. My assistant called me – it was probably 9:30 p.m. El Paso time – and she said there was a problem," Gomez said. "She said she got a phone call from the lab that he didn't pass the HIV test."
Gomez is an experienced matchmaker and didn't panic.
"My experience in doing blood exams is that there have been mistakes," he said, recalling that a champion boxer who was on one of his cards once had failed a hepatitis test. When it was readministered, he passed.
"I spoke to the commission and told them the situation," Gomez said. "I told [Texas Athletic Commission chief] Dickie Cole, 'I have a problem.' I told him Manon didn't pass the HIV test. Knowing that it's happened before, that maybe it was a mistake, the commission helped us out and said it would administer another test first thing in the morning. We had to pay a little extra, but they would have the results by 3 p.m. Saturday."
When 3 p.m. arrived, so did the results from the second test. Manon failed again.
"I was the one who told him," Diaz said. "It was terrible. He was in denial. With that kind of news, any human being would be. He was in denial for a few days. I made some calls to a few places to get some assistance for him."
Said Gomez, "The kid spoke to the people at the lab [in Spanish]. The kid was devastated. I felt so bad. He didn't want to come out of his room. He was crying."
| “ | They had originally told me he had a problem with his vision, but when I found out, I was sad for the guy. I didn't know what to think. When I found out I was like, 'I could have been fighting the guy, and he had AIDS.' ” | |
| — Abner Mares, the scheduled foe of Leocadio Manon on April 9 |
All along, the Mares camp was kept informed that Manon had an issue with his medicals, though the reason was not disclosed at first. When the fight finally was scrapped, the camp was told what happened, although Mares himself didn't find out the exact reason until the next day.
"They had originally told me he had a problem with his vision, but when I found out, I was sad for the guy," said Mares, who recently turned 19. "I didn't know what to think. When I found out I was like, 'I could have been fighting the guy, and he had AIDS.' But I trust my manager and my father and Golden Boy. You never know. I might have had an open cut. Things happen. I'm pretty sure [the pre-fight medical exams] work. I wish the best for him. I hope and pray to God he doesn't have it. He's young. With God's will, I hope it was just a mistake."
Mike Vital, who co-manages Mares with his father Ismael, said: "We felt bad for the guy. Hopefully everything works out. Abner was surprised. His first reaction was, 'I hope he's OK. Forget about boxing.' His first reaction was, 'I hope he does OK and I hope it's not true.' His first reaction was concern for his opponent."
Eventually, Manon pulled himself together enough to attend the card.
"He was down, really down, but he thanked us," Gomez said. "He's such a humble, Christian kid. He thanked us for having him there. He thanked us for covering his expenses and giving him food money. I gave him a hug and told him to keep his head up. I tried my best to keep him up. I've never been in a situation like that. It was really awkward."
"We told him we were sorry that this happened and if there is anything we can do, we will try to help," Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer said.
Diaz said Manon insists he does not know how he contracted HIV.
"That's one of the things we've been talking about, but he's the only one who knows," Diaz said. "He says he doesn't have any idea. But even if he did, I don't know if he would tell me."
While awaiting results of the second test, Manon told the Spanish-language newspaper La Opinion: "I really wish this was all a mistake. I really don't know where I could have caught this."
Because of confidentiality rules, state commissions cannot disclose the specific reason a fight falls through, other than to say it was for medical reasons.
A situation similar to Manon's, but of a far higher profile, occurred in February 1996, when heavyweight Tommy Morrison was suspended for medical reasons in Nevada hours before he was to fight Arthur Weather in Las Vegas on Showtime. It was learned that Morrison had tested positive for HIV.
The test results probably will end Manon's boxing career unless he can prove he is not HIV-positive. Because Manon is suspended in Texas, all other jurisdictions in the United States and most of North America will honor the suspension. So will many others around the world.
Morrison fought once more after his positive test, going to Japan to fight in November 1996. He knocked out Marcus Rhode in the first round, but the bout was contested under amended rules. If either fighter had suffered a cut, the bout would have ended and it would have gone to the scorecards.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site, HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is found in varying concentrations or amounts in bodily fluids such as blood. Though rare, HIV transmission can result from direct contact between skin or mucous membranes and infected blood. To prevent even such rare occurrences, the CDC recommends precautions should be taken in all settings to prevent exposures to the blood of persons who are HIV infected.
In Nevada, the nation's leading boxing state, HIV testing has been part of pre-fight screening for about 15 years. According to commission executive director Marc Ratner, blood tests – the results of which are good for one year in Nevada – have been given to more than 5,000 fighters. He estimates that only 5-10 have come back HIV-positive.
Morrison's case was almost 10 years ago. He now lives in Tennessee and reportedly has shown no symptoms of AIDS, and still hopes to fight again. Diaz said she has tried to boost Manon's spirits with such anecdotes.
"He's OK, he's still with me in Florida," she said. "It's business at the ring, but before and after that, we are a family. That's the way I operate with all of my fighters. They're human beings before they are boxers. They need the support. I am helping him as much as I can."
| “ | He's full of hope. He's taking it very good I would say. It's amazing to see how energized he is and how he is willing to go on in life. It's important for him to exercise and stay healthy. ” | |
| — Rosa Diaz, Manon's agent |
Diaz said now Manon is doing much better.
"He's training. He has not stopped training," said Diaz, noting that he no longer spars. "He's full of hope. He's taking it very good I would say. It's amazing to see how energized he is and how he is willing to go on in life. It's important for him to exercise and stay healthy."
Manon told ESPN Deportes.com that, like Morrison, he remains optimistic about a potential return to the ring, saying, "When I'm training, I feel an irresistible desire to have my gloves on again, and I ask God almighty to give me a new chance."
Diaz said Manon's gym mates have helped him through this difficult time and have not turned their back on him.
"He's trying to put his life together," Diaz said. "If you ask me very simply, he's OK. He's going through this. He has hope. He's going to church. He has a lot of people who love him and support him. He feels supported. While he was in the denial stage, he was going a little crazy. I told him to thank God that he got his visa and got here and found out in time. If he was in the Dominican, he wouldn't have found out until it was too late, and he would have continued to fight and not known."
That, of course, is a concern because until recently, no pre-fight blood testing existed in the Dominican. Manon fought four times in 2004, most recently in November, when he won a six-round decision. .
"We told the commission over there they need to test, but they don't do it," Diaz said in April, before the National Boxing Commission of the Dominican Republic recently announced its plan to implement compulsory exams every six months. "The commission over there will have to improve the way they do things. They can't just ignore it and keep going. They need to do something because the eyes of the international boxing community could be on them."
Vital is relieved the Texas commission has HIV testing in its rules.
"We're glad the boxing commission did the tests they do to protect everyone involved," Vital said. "If it is true, [Manon] can go get some medicine and live a decent life. Forget about boxing, it's the kid's life. This is a perfect example that shows that the commission works. I know a lot of boxers get mad that they have to take blood tests and that stuff. With this one incident, they made up for all the tests. This could have saved a life. The one instance they caught makes all the tests worthwhile."
Mares, meanwhile, had his fight rescheduled for April 29, winning a decision in Laredo, Texas.
Manon will fight every day for the rest of his life.
Dan Rafael is the boxing writer for ESPN.com.
