FROM scavenger to millionaire. From nobody to somebody.

Boxer Carlo Paalam has come a long way, indeed.

But his rags-to-riches story doesn’t end there. There’s still something special, something big to accomplish before his amazing boxing journey gets complete–win the gold medal and put his name in the highest of places in the local Olympic lore, in the company of the beloved Hidilyn Diaz.

Come Saturday afternoon at the Kokugikan Arena, Paalam will climb the ring for the fourth and final time at the Tokyo Olympics that’s coming to an end, hoping and praying to hurdle the last stumbling block on his way to enormous fame.

Starting at 1 p.m., the Filipino fighter will be on everyone’s lips as he tries to reward an expectant nation a second gold medal, exactly 12 days after weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz delivered the country’s first ever Olympic triumph that was almost a century in the making.

The 23-year-old Paalam sets out as slight favorite when he fights Great Britain’s Galal Yafai, given his swashbuckling run to the finals highlighted by a shock technical split decision victory over the most feared fighter in the flyweight division in Olympic and world champion Shakhobidin Zoirov of Uzbekistan.

On the eve of the contest, the Team PH coaching staff said Paalam’s frame of mind is at its peak and the boxer is ready for the biggest fight of his young career in the mother of all sporting meets and the grandest of stage.

“Handa na si Carlo sa finals. Maganda ang ginagalaw,” said coach Elmer Pamisa, who discovered Paalam while the young boy was roaming the streets of Cagayan de Oro scavenging for anything that may be of worth.

“Hindi pa tapos ang finals, pero confident kami na ibubuhos lahat ni Carlo sa finals at iuwi natin ang second gold,” added Pamisa.

But who’s this Galal Yafai, the boxer standing between Paalam and the flyweight gold medal?

He’s 28 years old, 5-foot-5 and born of Yemeni parents, who advanced to the championship also last Friday after a slugfest of a semifinal against Saken Bibossinov of Kazakhstan, who was reduced to tears after the verdict was announced.

Boxing is in his DNA. He’s a brother of pro boxers, former WBA super-flyweight champion Kai Yafai and Gamay Yafai, with whom Galal sparred with extensively as part of his preparation for the Olympics. He’s not new to winning, having clinched a gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and a silver in the 2017 European championships.

Not only that, Yafai also bagged the bronze in the flyweight class at the 2019 European Games and competed at the 2016 Rio Olympics where he lost his Round of 16 bout to Joahnys Arpilagos of Cuba.

Paalam and Yafai are familiar with each other, having sparred in 2018 at the England Institute of Sport in Sheffield, a four-hour drive by car from London.

As recalled by Pamisa, Eumir Marcial, Mario Fernandez and Paalam, accompanied by men’s team coach Ronald Chavez, went to Sheffield to spar with their British counterparts.

One such session involved Paalam, then campaigning in the 49-kilogram division, and Yafai.

According to Chavez, Paalam got tested on several occasions of the five-round sparring with Yafai and held his own against the older, more seasoned British.

“Nasa 49 (kilograms) pa lang si Carlo noon at dikit naman naging sparring nila, di naman siya nagpadehado,” recalled Chavez.

“Ngayon, mas experienced na si Carlo kasi nakapaglaro na siya sa world championship”.

Chavez said Yafai, like Tanaka, loves to trade punches in frenetic fashion, which could play into the Filipino’s patient in-and-out style.

Tingin ko medyo angat na si Carlo ngayon although di rin tayo pwede pakumpiyansa,” said Chavez, who reached the quarterfinal of the lightweight division in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics before losing to a South Korean.

“Pareho sila halos laro ni Tanaka, pero mas mautak at makaranasan si Yafai.”

Asked about Paalam’s condition going to the final, Chavez said,” A, wala nang sakit-sakit si Carlo ngayon kasi pa-gold medal fight na siya e.”

“Ang maraming nararamdamang saki ngayon , si Eumir,” he added, laughing.

A native of Talakag, Bukidnon, whose skills developed under the boxing program of Cagayan de Oro, Paalam has been nothing short of phenomenal in the Olympiad.

After defeating Ireland’s Brendan Irvine, 4-1, in his opening bout, Paalam was even more impressive in his next two. He hammered out a unanimous decision win against Algeria’s Mohamed Flissi, before eliminating Zoirov to arrange that semifinal showdown with Tanaka.

Against Tanaka, he was a sight to behold.

Executing a game-plan to perfection, Paalam dominated Ryomei Tanaka from the first round and made his hapless Japanese foe dazed and confused, repeatedly swinging on air as the Filipino too quick and too smart to hit to lose the fight via 0-5 decision with all judges scoring it 30-27.

“I played the best match ever so I don’t regret anything,” Tanaka said through an interpreter. “I don’t feel I lost because the opponent was very good; I just lost to myself.”

Meantime, Yuka Saso found her touch, scoring a four-under-par 67 in the third round to move up the leaderboard in the women’s golf competition at the Kasumigaseki Country Club.

Saso, 20, showed a glimpse of the form that won her a historic US Women’s Open title as she rolled in five birdies including in her last two – on the 8th and 9th holes after she teed off in the back nine – against a lone bogey on the 10th.

The birdie-birdie finish enabled Saso to move up from joint 34th at the start of the day to a tie for 20th place on a four-under 209 with one round left to play in the Fil-Japanese ace’s maiden appearance in the Olympics.

The 2018 Asian Games double gold winner, however, remained 11 shots off the fiery pace set by American Nelly Korda, who followed a 62 with a 69 and still remained three shots clear of the field on a 15-under 198 total.

Indian youngster Aditi Ashok is in the second spot at 12-under 201 after a 68 while tied for third at 10-under are Lydia Ko of New Zealand (66), Hannah Green of Australia (67), Mone Imami of Japan (68), and Dane Emily Pedersen (70).

The Philippines’ other bet, Bianca Pagdanganan, blew a hot start with two double bogeys and a bogey in a sloppy back nine and settled for a second straight 71 – good for a share of 29th place with two others at 211.

The 23-year old Pagdanganan got as low as five-under after three birdies in her first 10 holes, but a combination of bad shots and bad breaks got her coming in. By Joe Antonio