Polish President Karol Nawrocki swapped diplomatic meetings for boxing gloves during his official visit to the Philippines, taking part in a training session with eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao in Manila. Video shared online shows the Polish president working on the pads with the Filipino boxing legend rather than taking part in a competitive sparring bout.
Pacquiao published footage from the session on social media and described it as an honour to train the Polish president. Poland’s Presidential Chancellery separately confirmed to the Polish Press Agency that the meeting and boxing session had taken place.
The encounter was particularly fitting for Nawrocki, who has a long personal connection with boxing. Before entering frontline politics, he trained as an amateur and has previously said he competed as a heavyweight for the Stoczniowiec club in Gdańsk. In a 2020 interview, he described himself as a former amateur heavyweight champion.
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Pacquiao, meanwhile, is one of the most decorated boxers in the sport’s history and remains the only fighter to have won world titles across eight weight divisions. He also served as a Philippine senator from 2016 to 2022 and later ran unsuccessfully for president.
His public role has recently expanded again. On 8 September, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr appointed Pacquiao secretary and lead convenor of the country’s National Anti-Poverty Commission, placing him in charge of coordinating government efforts on poverty reduction and social reform.
Nawrocki referred to that transition after their meeting, noting that Pacquiao had moved from “fighting in the ring” to fighting poverty through public service. The Polish president presented the former senator’s new role as an example of responsibility towards the wider community.
Part of Poland’s first presidential visit to the Philippines
The boxing session took place during Nawrocki’s 6–8 October official visit to the Philippines, the first visit by a serving Polish president to the country since diplomatic relations were established in 1973.
The visit has been substantially more than ceremonial. Nawrocki met Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, attended a Polish-Philippine IT business summit, met entrepreneurs and members of the Polish community, spoke at the University of Santo Tomas and was scheduled to visit Villamor Air Base.
During talks in Manila, Nawrocki said Poland wanted to elevate relations with the Philippines towards a strategic partnership and expand cooperation in business, security and Southeast Asia. Warsaw is also seeking stronger Philippine support for Poland’s efforts to secure a lasting presence in the G20 format.
The informal meeting with Pacquiao therefore provided a lighter moment during what is otherwise a diplomatic and economic visit — while also bringing together two figures with an unusually direct connection to boxing.
For Nawrocki, the footage offered a rare chance for a serving head of state to demonstrate a sport he practised before entering high office. For Pacquiao, it combined his status as a global sporting celebrity with his renewed role inside the Philippine government.
