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An island rocks to the beat of a native son's victory
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) -- Music pounded until dawn and cavalcades of honking cars wound through the streets.Native son Felix Trinidad had beaten Oscar De La Hoya, triggering an all-night fiesta on the island.
The government planned a rally to welcome Trinidad on Monday, and San Juan Mayor Sila Calderon gave city employees the day off. Gov. Pedro Rossello praised Trinidad for "glorifying the name of Puerto Rico."
Cable television officials estimated nearly half of the 135,000 homes in San Juan capable of receiving the $50 pay-per-view fight were tuned in.
When the majority decision was announced in Las Vegas early Sunday, a roar of "Tito! Tito!" carried over the roofs of historic Old San Juan. The sounds reverberated on the streets where cars paraded and bands of youngsters waved Puerto Rico's lone-star flag.
"This is unbelievable for Puerto Rico!" shouted Carlos Colon at Coaches sports bar in San Juan, where young men mounted the bar and danced on tables.
His girlfriend sat glumly, possibly the only person in the bar who supported De La Hoya.
Like many, Colon viewed Trinidad's victory as a nationalist triumph for this U.S. territory.
"Pedro Rossello wants to make us Americans. But Tito shows we're Puerto Ricans," said an older man referring to the bid by the governor to make Puerto Rico the 51st state. "Trinidad won because he's Puerto Rican and Puerto Ricans are hungry."
Trinidad displayed his own nationalist bent, entering the ring before a sign that said "Navy, get out of Vieques," in reference to a controversial military training ground on the outlying island of Vieques. The Puerto Rican government is demanding the U.S. Navy leave the island.
Trinidad, little known outside Puerto Rico because he speaks only Spanish, is adored in his homeland as a churchgoing Christian who unabashedly sports religious pins declaring, "I love Jesus." He is a dedicated husband and the father of a 2-year-old girl, Ashley.
His reputation is untarnished by the abusive pursuits that have broken other Puerto Rican boxers: Edwin Rosario, who died of a drug overdose 21 months ago; Wilfredo Gomez, arrested in 1994 on charges of domestic violence and buying cocaine; Esteban DeJesus, another champion ravaged by drugs and AIDS.
Instead, Trinidad advertises freely for the Alliance for a Drug-Free Puerto Rico, his face on its posters outside bus stops and schools. On Saturday night across the island, thousands of people crowded into standing-room only bars that charged $15 to watch the fight on big screens.
At the Capitol, the government paid $72,000 to mount 16 giant screens and gave away tickets to 8,000 people who watched the welterweight title bout outdoors, cooled by breezes off the Atlantic Ocean.
The fervor for their 26-year-old hero diminished early in the fight. De La Hoya, the WBC champion, got in more and more jabs and seemed on his way to defeating the IBF champion.
Every time Trinidad landed a punch, people shouted and waved their flags.
"Give it to him! Give it to him hard!" shouted Trinidad's mother, Irma Doris Garcia, as she watched with the fighter's wife, Sharon in her home on the outskirts of San Juan.
The mood picked up as Trinidad landed crashing rights to the head in the final rounds.
"Hit him! Hit him! Knock his head off," fans yelled.
The victory announcement brought roars, kisses and hugs. People skateboarded down Ashford Avenue in Condado, waving flags. Traffic stood still and music blasted.
As far as 22-year-old Monica Irrizary was concerned, nothing could be better.
"This is the best thing that's happened this millennium as we go, go, go with Tito!" she said.
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