“The time you won your town the race

We chaired you through the market place;

Man and boy stood cheering by

And home we brought you shoulder-high.

Today, the road all runners come,

Shoulder-high, we bring you home,

And set you at your threshold down,

Townsman of a stiller town.”

–To An Athlete Dying Young, A.E. Housman

THE late great American sportswriter Jim Murray once wrote about athletes dying young:

“Midcourt in a basketball game is a terrible place to die. So is the five-yard-line of the Chicago Bears. So is the center ring at Madison Square Garden.

Age 23 is a terrible time to die. But, then, so is 63. Maybe no one is ever ready.”

Murray also wrote: “Death should stay away from young men’s games. Death belongs in musty hospital rooms, sickbeds. It should not impinge its terrible presence on the celebrations of youth, reap its frightful harvest in fields where cheers ring and bands play and banners wave.”

Well, death was an unwelcome spectator in the country again when Filipino bantamweight champion Kenneth Egano passed away last Wednesday, only four days after beating Jason Facularin by unanimous decision in an eight-rounder in Imus, Cavite.

The Egano-Facularin fight was part of Blow-by-Blow boxing promotion organized by former Senator and eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao as part of his efforts to discover more young and talented Filipino boxers.

Reports said the 22-year-old Egano collapsed while he was waiting for the official result of his bout.

A native of General Santos City, Egano was rushed to the hospital after paramedics attended to him on top of the ring.

He collapsed into a four-day coma before losing the battle for his life last Wednesday.

A post-fight brain hemorrhage was reportedly the cause of death.

Another report said Egano, who holds a 7-1 win-loss record as a professional had already promised his mother Anabelle that he would retire from boxing if he did not become a world champion in three year.

“There is nothing more precious than human life,” said Pacquiao, referring to Egano, who made his Blow-by-Blow debut last February in General Santos City and entered the fight armed with a 6-1 win-loss record with three knockouts.

“Boxing is truly a dangerous sport and the boxers deserve nothing but respect as they put their lives on the line,” added Pacquiao, who also fought in Blow-by-Blow early in his career.

But how do you tell that to Egano or any other young men, whose life has been built around a sport?

How do you tell that to Jonas Garcia, the 16-year-old high school athlete who died due to internal bleeding after a boxing match in a regional sports competition last December 16, 2013?

How do you tell that to the unidentified young student-athlete from Colegio San Agustin-Makati, who died while playing football in a varsity football game outside the school last March 26, 2013?

How do you say it’s over?

As they always say in sports, a young player will always want to play, whatever the risk.

And as well-known poet A.E. Housman wisely put it, “Athletes must have a dream, if they want to live.”

* * *

This Sunday, May 14 will be Mother’s Day.

Let me take this opportunity to greet my Mom Virgie, my wife Liza and daughter Steffi, my sister Mary Grace and my sister-in-law Annette and her daughter Mary on this very special day.

Happy Mother’s Day also to all the mothers in the world.

NOTES — Happy birthday to Marivic Gan (May 5), Mercy Patricio (May 8), Gemma Jose (May11) and Jamie Lim (May 13).

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