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kenyan_cheena · 02-02-2005, 05:15 PM

JACKSON HAPPY TO BE FIGHTING AT HOME

Saturday 19 January 2002

Two days after the Heavyweight Boxing Federation made the announcement of the seedings of the 192 men who would compete in their World Championship and 1st Defense tournaments, a young man named Peter Jackson boarded a plane at JFK and returned to his homeland of Australia.

21 year-old Jackson had attended the federation's October auditions and, in his own opinion, had performed quite well. However, Jackson had never considered that the HBF would be so impressed with him that they would make him the 6th seed for their World Championship tournament. That was truly beyond his loftiest ambitions, but it was exactly what happened.

It was the most exciting moment of his life, but he had no one to celebrate it with. He had traveled to New York alone, and so it was that on Sunday the 25th of November 2001, Jackson traveled back home alone. The top five seeded fighters were all from the USA, making Jackson the highest seeded "international" fighter in the tournament. But he received very little (if any) attention from the American media, and so he slipped out of the country unnoticed.

In contrast, the reception Jackson received back home in Australia was overwhelming. By the time he flew into Mascot Airport in Sydney, local scribes were already proclaiming him as the next great Australian athlete. They were making a mighty deal of the fact that Jackson had been seeded so highly in the tournament and were already speculating at how incredible it would be if the first HBF World Champion was an Australian.

A number of appearances on television and radio followed, including a hilarious spot on "Rove Live". Understandably, though, the media frenzy died down after a few weeks. After all, Jackson's first professional fight would not take place until the 21st of January. By Christmas time, Jackson had almost returned to his previous state of anonimity. And that was fine with him. It made it so much easier for him to train. He was able to return to his job down at Sydney Harbour without much attention. It helped that his workmates didn't treat him like royalty.

Born in the Caribbean, Jackson's family moved to Australia when he was six years-old. Jackson fell in love with his new home, to the extent where, when his parents returned home to the Virgin Islands, Jackson stayed in Australia. He became an excellent swimmer and diver, leading to him finding work on the waterfront.

When it was announced in early January that Jackson's professional debut would take place at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, the media circus started up again. Jackson was so happy that he would be making his debut in his hometown, partly because he would not have to travel overseas so soon after returning home, but mainly because he wanted to entertain his fellow Australians.

"I want to represent Australia in this fine sport," Jackson said. "And I want my people to be able to say that Australia has a world class Heavyweight boxer. I love this country so much, and it's my dream to bring a World Championship here. But, it's a long road. This tournament is going to be tough, so I can really only approach it as - I know it's cliched - "one fight at a time". I can't look ahead. Doing that will lead to failure, and I don't want to fail my people."

Well, Peter Jackson's professional HBF debut is now just a matter of two days away. The Sydney Entertainment Centre was a sellout within a day of tickets going on sale, so Jackson will indeed have thousands of Australians in his corner come Monday night...

02-02-2005, 05:15 PM	#57 (permalink)
kenyan_cheena Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Sydney, NSW, Australia Posts: 7,579 Thanks: 80 Thanked 143x in 125 posts	JACKSON HAPPY TO BE FIGHTING AT HOME Saturday 19 January 2002 Two days after the Heavyweight Boxing Federation made the announcement of the seedings of the 192 men who would compete in their World Championship and 1st Defense tournaments, a young man named Peter Jackson boarded a plane at JFK and returned to his homeland of Australia. 21 year-old Jackson had attended the federation's October auditions and, in his own opinion, had performed quite well. However, Jackson had never considered that the HBF would be so impressed with him that they would make him the 6th seed for their World Championship tournament. That was truly beyond his loftiest ambitions, but it was exactly what happened. It was the most exciting moment of his life, but he had no one to celebrate it with. He had traveled to New York alone, and so it was that on Sunday the 25th of November 2001, Jackson traveled back home alone. The top five seeded fighters were all from the USA, making Jackson the highest seeded "international" fighter in the tournament. But he received very little (if any) attention from the American media, and so he slipped out of the country unnoticed. In contrast, the reception Jackson received back home in Australia was overwhelming. By the time he flew into Mascot Airport in Sydney, local scribes were already proclaiming him as the next great Australian athlete. They were making a mighty deal of the fact that Jackson had been seeded so highly in the tournament and were already speculating at how incredible it would be if the first HBF World Champion was an Australian. A number of appearances on television and radio followed, including a hilarious spot on "Rove Live". Understandably, though, the media frenzy died down after a few weeks. After all, Jackson's first professional fight would not take place until the 21st of January. By Christmas time, Jackson had almost returned to his previous state of anonimity. And that was fine with him. It made it so much easier for him to train. He was able to return to his job down at Sydney Harbour without much attention. It helped that his workmates didn't treat him like royalty. Born in the Caribbean, Jackson's family moved to Australia when he was six years-old. Jackson fell in love with his new home, to the extent where, when his parents returned home to the Virgin Islands, Jackson stayed in Australia. He became an excellent swimmer and diver, leading to him finding work on the waterfront. When it was announced in early January that Jackson's professional debut would take place at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, the media circus started up again. Jackson was so happy that he would be making his debut in his hometown, partly because he would not have to travel overseas so soon after returning home, but mainly because he wanted to entertain his fellow Australians. "I want to represent Australia in this fine sport," Jackson said. "And I want my people to be able to say that Australia has a world class Heavyweight boxer. I love this country so much, and it's my dream to bring a World Championship here. But, it's a long road. This tournament is going to be tough, so I can really only approach it as - I know it's cliched - "one fight at a time". I can't look ahead. Doing that will lead to failure, and I don't want to fail my people." Well, Peter Jackson's professional HBF debut is now just a matter of two days away. The Sydney Entertainment Centre was a sellout within a day of tickets going on sale, so Jackson will indeed have thousands of Australians in his corner come Monday night... Last edited by kenyan_cheena; 08-25-2007 at 09:18 PM.