Fiesta en San Juan
Trinidad's victory sends Puerto Rico into frenzy
Posted: Sunday September 19, 1999 03:05 AM
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"This is unbelievable for Puerto Rico!" said one Puerto Rican after the Trinidad win. AP |
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) -- A deafening roar punctuated by wolf whistles and high-pitched screams from young women shook the airwaves as the decision was announced: Felix Trinidad, King of the Ring.
"Tito! Tito!" the refrain carried over the roofs of the historic colonial city and was taken up on the streets where people paraded in hooting cars and bands of youngsters waving Puerto Rico's single Star and Stripes celebrated Sunday's victory of their native son.
On highways outside the old city, miles of traffic stalled with people hanging out of cars, waving flags and fists and screaming for their hero: "Tito is our champion."
"This is unbelievable for Puerto Rico!" shouted Carlos Colon at Coaches sports bar in San Juan, where young men mounted the bar and started dancing on tables.
His girlfriend sat glumly, possibly the only person in the bar who supported Oscar De La Hoya.
Many people here counted Trinidad's win on points over the Mexican American as a nationalist victory for this U.S. Caribbean territory, where patriotic feelings run very strong despite repeated defeats for the independence movement at the ballots.
"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 of the union. "Trinidad won because he's Puerto Rican and Puerto Ricans are hungry."
"Borincua! Borincua!" people yelled, using the Taino Indian name for the island.
Thousands of people crowded into standing-room only bars that charged $15 or more to watch the match 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 it in the open, cooled by breezes off the Atlantic Ocean.
The fervor and yells for Trinidad became more subdued after the opening, when De La Hoya, the WBC champion, got in more and more jabs and seemed assured of victory over the Puerto Rican IBF champion.
Every time Trinidad landed a punch, people shouted: "Tito! Tito!" and waved their flags.
Every time De La Hoya landed a punch there was sorrowful silence or boos.
The mood picked up as Trinidad landed some crashing rights to the head in the final rounds. "Hit him! Hit him! Knock his head off," fans yelled, willing Trinidad to perform one of the knockouts for which he is famous on the island.
The victory announcement brought a tremendous roar of approval. People kissed and hugged each other. It was the signal for a big fiesta.
Teenagers skateboarded down Ashford Avenue in the upscale Condado neighborhood, waving Puerto Rican flags. People hung perilously our of cars, waving index fingers and shouting 'Puerto Rico is Number One!' Traffic is some areas came to a standstill. In bars, music blasted and people rocked.
Fans tore down posters and waved around the pictures of the two fighters that advertised: "The Match of Destiny."
"This is the best thing that's happened this millennium as we go, go, go with Tito!" declared Monica Irrizary, 22.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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