Manny Pacquiao is tackling Covid-19 with Jack Ma and may fight UFC’s Conor McGregor for charity too – but how did he get his start?
Tipped to challenge Rodrigo Duterte for the Philippines’ presidency, boxing millionaire Pacquiao may first face UFC’s outspoken Irishman in the ring – but how did the PacMan get where he is today?
Manny “PacMan” Pacquiao’s life story is the stuff of movies. Starting life in extreme poverty in the southern Philippines, the multiple-weight boxing world champion now sits on a US$220 million fortune. So how did he do it?
He lived in a shack
As a child, Pacquiao lived in a small shack surrounded by jungle and coconut groves, in General Santos province on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao. The family’s single-room home housed his mum, dad, an older sister and two younger brothers.
His dad picked coconuts to make money
The fighter’s father spent his days climbing trees to collect coconuts to sell. Pacquiao has said his father climbed around 70 trees a day to make enough money to feed the family. His mum sold peanuts to make a little extra here and there.
Eating bananas
Pacquiao’s father barely made enough money to feed the family and having rice was a luxury. The family ate what they could scavenge, which was mostly bananas and root crops.
Teased as a child
As a young boy, PacMan was teased because his family was so poor. When one of his younger brothers was bullied one day, Pacquiao stepped in to defend him. He has said he knew at a young age that he would have to be a fighter to get by in life.