The flyweight boxer clinched the silver at his Olympic debut, contributing to the best Olympic medal haul for the Philippines in history. Paalam almost didn’t make it to Tokyo had several other qualifiers not cancelled because of the pandemic. With a last-minute notification, he was bumped up due to his ranking, which was no.2 in Asia. He overcame an even bigger hurdle in the Olympic ring, where he defeated several boxing veterans, propelling him to medal territory. The 23-year-old’s streak ended when he lost on a split decision to British boxer Galal Yafai.

Paalam was a young garbage scavenger from Cagayan de Oro who joined weekly boxing matches at his local park to win some money to buy food for his family, who had no idea how he was earning it. He was only nine years old when he was discovered by local sports officials, who took him in for training under a program that provided boxers a monthly allowance plus room and board. He joined the national team in 2013 and brought glory to his hometown when he won gold in the 2019 SEA Games. For his Olympic medal, Paalam will be rewarded with at least PHP17 million from the government and the private sector.