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Tag: BOXING

  • NDSF:  Rivers  seek to dominate Weightlifting, Swimming, Boxing ,Para-Lifting

    NDSF:  Rivers  seek to dominate Weightlifting, Swimming, Boxing ,Para-Lifting

    Rivers State continued the final state trials for weightlifters, swimmers, boxers and para-lifters as the athletes battled for places in Team Rivers contingent for the forthcoming Niger Delta Sports Festival (NDSF).

    The games will be held in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State from April 1-8.

    The Boxing and Weightlifting Arena on Niger Street in Old Port Harcourt Township  came alive as athletes showed their skills and willingness to be part of the festival train.

    The state technical coordinators believe they have identified some promising athletes with high potential for successful careers in their chosen fields.

    Coach Aduche Ojadi, the state’s weightlifting coach, said the athletes have been training intensively for some time and the trials was expected have been a true test of their strength and endurance.

    Read Also: Carloha, NFF seal partnership deal

    “The Niger Delta Sports Festival is indeed a fantastic initiative, providing a platform for young athletes to showcase their talents and potentially launch their careers. The fact that the trials are already yielding promising new athletes is a testament to the festival’s importance,”  Aduche said.

    He added: “The festival is a great way to identify and nurture young talents, and the NDDC’s support is crucial in making this happen. By providing opportunities for young athletes to compete and develop their skills, the NDDC is not only promoting sports development but also contributing to the overall well-being of the region and country.”

    Gift Otuonye, the state’s boxing coach, believes that the trials provided her with the opportunity to see and assess boxers she had not known before. She said that she has assembled champions that would be able to replicate the golden era of the sport for the state.

    According to her: “The boxers are all good and we are hopeful. I think that with the opportunities being provided by this Niger Delta Sports Festival, many athletes, especially boxers, will want to take advantage, come out of the creeks and embrace sports. It is time to relaunch boxing to enviable heights in the state and region .“

  • Boxing: Aboderin  underlines  gains  from ABU Convention 

    Boxing: Aboderin  underlines  gains  from ABU Convention 

    The secretary general of the Nigeria Boxing Board of Control (NBBofC), Remi Aboderin, has expressed satisfaction over the  standard of the on-going 2024 convention of the Africa Boxing Union (ABU), being held in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. 

    Aboderin, who doubles as the President of the West African Boxing Union (WABU), reportedly disclosed via a telephone conversation with the spokesperson of the Boxing Promoters Association of Nigeria (BPAN), Edna Aiyegbeni.

    Aboderin said he was delighted that the president of BPAN, Omonlei Yakubu Imadu, the chairman and CEO of Yucateco Boxing Promotions, his vice, Alhaji Wasiu Alabi Waheed, the CEO of D’Lad Boxing Promotions, and an international ring official and boxing matchmaker, Adesanya Olusegun, were all present at the boxing convention.

    Read Also: Diri affirms commitment to Sports development

    “This is a significant move to support the development of boxing in Nigeria at both professional and amateur. Recognizing the importance of boxing as one of the most popular sports in the world, I think the next move is to ensure that the necessary infrastructure is in place for aspiring boxers to train and excel in Nigeria,” Aboderin was quoted as saying.

    He, however, commended  Houichi Houicine, the President, African Boxing Union (ABU), and the Secretary General of the boxing body, Mrs. Maureen Mulangira for their gracious hospitality.

  • Open Boxing Competition gets date

    Open Boxing Competition gets date

    Chairman of Agbado Oke Odo Community Development Council, Ernest Kasunmu, will join teeming lovers of boxing on Sunday, 17th December, 2023 in the second edition of the annual Amateur Open Boxing Competition.

    The competition to be hosted by the Karomishaus Organisation is also supported by the Lagos State Amateur Boxing Competition.

    According to the organisers, the aims and objectives of the competition among others are; “to engage the youths meaningfully, and by extension gainfully employed through sports,” noting that “In Nigeria, we have not fully tapped into the potentials of sports as a business.”

    Read Also: DORA KAYODE: How Kayode got his groove back

    Kasunmu explained further that; “participants are amateur boxers from our LCDA and others from councils like Mushin, Oshodi, Agege Orile Agege,  Egbe Idimu, and Ojokoro and it is going to be in both male and female categories. It is free and participants will be given prizes.”

    The promoter who was also a boxer in his growing years also noted that crime would be reduced where youths are meaningfully and gainfully engaged.

    “We are of the view that crime will be highly reduced where youths are meaningfully engaged. Take the example of a football competition you can’t hear of crime during competition because everybody is watching the game, and it would help the mental development of our youths. One way or the other we are all involved in playing and watching games,” he explained.

  • Oyo boxing, Ibarapa LG set for December boxing show

    Oyo boxing, Ibarapa LG set for December boxing show

    The Oyo State Amateur Boxing Association (OSABA) and the Ibarapa Local Government are set to organize a boxing tournament in December, 2023.

    Speaking in Ibadan, boxing promoter Abimbola Adeoye who disclosed this said the three-day tournament is meant to discover hidden talent in the grassroots.

    Adeoye who is also the son of the former Oyo State Amateur Boxing Chairman, late Emmanuel Adeoye noted that no fewer than 50 amateur boxers from Ibadan, Iseyin, Ogbomoso will besiege Ibadan for the boxing tourney adding that not less than N3million would be spent while winners in each category are to go home with N50,000.

    He explained that well meaning Nigerians are also being cultivated to support the boxing fiesta which will include young male and female boxers who would be shepherded by their coaches who will bring them to the show.

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    Holding at the Lekan Salami stadium, winners will also go home with equipments    as an encouragement and boost to their careers.

    Adeoye stated that besides discovering talent for Oyo State like he did with Rilwan Adekola at the annual edition of the Late E A Adeoye boxing tournament, young and talented boxers would be taken off the streets as the boxers converge for the contest for honours.

    “We want to use this opportunity to give young boxers the opportunity to showcase their talent so that that they can be identified for nurturing by coaches who will be around to do that.”

  • Nigeria pledges loyalty to International Boxing Association

    Nigeria pledges loyalty to International Boxing Association

    The Nigeria Boxing Federation (NBF) has committed  its “firm loyalty” to the International Olympic Committee (IOC)-backed International Boxing Association (IBA)  even  as at it has denied joining  the  breakaway World Boxing.

    Nigeria was announced as the first member of World Boxing from the continent at the weekend along with Finland, Iceland, Jamaica, Norway, and the Czech Republic.

    But the NBF vice-president Azania Omo-Agege  in a statement circulated to African Boxing Confederation (AFBC) members, has denied the development.

    “We reaffirm our firm loyalty to IBA, the sole IOC recognised international body and we stand in solidarity with the IBA family,” Omo-Agege, who is also Acting President of AFBC, said.

    Omo-Agege said the news of Nigeria joining World Boxing was circulated to “tarnish the image of AFBC and IBA” and “will be dealt with internally”.

    Read Also: IOC may axe boxing at 2028 LA Games

    “I wish to make it unequivocally clear that the NBF dissociates itself from World Boxing,” he continued.

    “A significant decision of this magnitude can only be made by the Board and the Congress neither of which was convened.

    “As the vice-president of NBF, I affirm I’m not aware of any rigorous application to join World Boxing.”

    The IBA, expelled by the International Olympic Committee, recently had a spat with AFBC, after the continental body’s Congress to elect a new President this month in Durban was postponed due to a row over the list of candidates.

    The list included Cameroon’s Bertrand Mendouga, who was forced out in August as AFBC President, after accusations of embezzlement.

    AFBC announced later that they will conduct the elections on November 18 in Africa.

    However, IBA wants it to be held in Dubai and has said that they will not cover the costs of the Congress if it is held in Africa.

    African members have constantly supported Russian IBA President Umar Kremlev during his regime.

    The Asian Boxing Confederation also recently pledged their loyalty to Kremlev.

    With IOC President Thomas Bach warning that World Boxing “don’t have sufficient global representation” to replace IBA, every member could be vital for the new body as the sport fights for its spot at Los Angeles 2028.

    These are crunch times for IBA as well with an appeal against its expulsion set to be heard in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on November 16.

  • IOC may axe boxing at 2028 LA Games

    IOC may axe boxing at 2028 LA Games

    • Olympics body okays cricket, squash, baseball

    Boxing faces an uncertain long-term future as an Olympic sport after its place at the 2028 Los Angeles Games was confirmed as being “on hold”  by the International Olympic Committee.

    Boxing has been part of every Olympics since 1920 and will feature at next year’s Paris Games.

    But in June, the International Boxing Association was effectively expelled from the Olympic movement following a bitter dispute between Games chiefs and its Russian president, Umar Kremlev.

    The withdrawal of recognition by the IOC’s executive board followed concerns over the credibility of IBA sanctioned tournaments as well as the boxing governing body’s finances and governance.

    No other boxing governing body has been recognised by the IOC.

    Yesterday’s IOC session in Mumbai voted on the programme for the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.

    But the IOC said that as it had not yet recognised another governing body for Olympic boxing, the executive board decided “any decision regarding the inclusion of boxing on the LA28 sports programme is put on hold”.

    It added: “So there was no discussion of this by the IOC session.”

    Read Also: Olympic-bound Omole: How my mother chose boxing for me over football

    LA 2028 chairman Casey Wasserman, speaking to reporters in Mumbai, said Monday: “Boxing has a great history in the Olympics, has a great history in America as a lineage of boxing champions. So we’d love to see boxing on the programme.

     “But obviously it’s a decision that’s going to be taken by the IOC’s membership, given the complexities that exist with the federation. We’re hopeful, but all we can do is wait for the answer.”

    Meanwhile, Cricket will feature as one of five new sports at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles after being approved yesterday  in a vote of the International Olympic Committee’s session.

    The IOC’s executive board last week accepted a proposal by LA organisers for cricket’s Twenty20 format, together with baseball/softball, flag football, squash and lacrosse, to be included.

  • Lagos Boxing Show: Benjamin shines in Hall Of Fame

    Lagos Boxing Show: Benjamin shines in Hall Of Fame

    Young boxer Koku Johnson from Dangote Boxing Club thrilled boxing fans in the just concluded 130th edition of the Monthly Saturday Boxing Show at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Sports Hall, Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.

    Johnson, fighting in the blue corner, knocked out his loud-mouthed rival Apollo Adegbuyi in the second round of a very tensed 67kg contest and the aspiring welterweight thanked the organisers of the tournament, Lagos Boxing Hall Of Fame, for their commitment towards the growth of boxing in Nigeria and thanked the fans for coming to watch boxers fight.

    “We are grateful to the organisers for given us (boxers) the opportunity to fight,” the elated Johnson said. “ We also would like thank our fans for their support and prayers towards boxing.”

    Read Also: Joshua vows to fight against drugs in boxing

    The fight bout of the day saw Isiaka Habeeb of Calisto Boxing Club, fighting in that blue corner, win by superior points over Fighter Boxing Club’s Omotosho Rokeeb in the first 46kg contest then Kareem Bolarinwa Michael of Ashimota Boxing Club outpunched Adekunle Habeeb of Olu-Omo Boxing Club in an unanimous decision victory in the second.

    In the first female contest, Mayowa Ayomide beat Idowu Eniola of Confidence Boxing Club 5-0 unanimously before Korede Alimot of Courage Boxing Club beat Lukmon Omotoyosi of Star Boxing Club by the same scores in the second bout.

  • Anthony Joshua insists: I won’t quit boxing

    Back in New York City – the place where Ruiz Jnr stunned the world by knocking Anthony Joshua to the canvas on way to victory – the Briton has renewed confidence ahead of the pair’s December rematch in Saudi Arabia.

    Many see the rematch as a defining moment in Joshua’s career, with another defeat at the hands of the Mexican likely leaving him in disarray.

    But for Joshua, he has been around the sport for long enough to know his strengths and his shortcomings but he is confident in right now to restore normality on the heavyweight division.

    ”There were times when I faced defeat as an amateur,” he said at the New York leg of the press tour on Thursday.

    ”My third fight; imagine I stopped then, there would be no now. I lost in the European Championship quarter-finals. Imagine I stopped then, there would be no now.

    ”I lost in the World Championship finals. Imagine I stopped then, there would be no now. Stopping isn’t in my DNA. As long as I have breath, I will keep fighting for the passion of boxing and more so as an ambassador for championship-level fighting. That’s where I belong.

    Read Also: UPDATED: Andy Ruiz beats Anthony Joshua

    ”I was born with a fighting spirit. I know how to fight. People say, ‘you lost your titles’. I say, ‘to lose something is to never get it back’. I have a second chance on December 7. I didn’t have a warm-up fight, I’m not gun-shy.”

    While Joshua was accused of taking Ruiz Jnr lightly the first time they met, the belt holder has no such plan to underestimate heavy artillery from a fired up Joshua in Diriyah.

    New York brings fond memories for Ruiz, as he became the first heavyweight champion of the world for his nation and he is determined not to end the year with a return of the belts he took so spectacularly this summer.

    ”This is where I became the first Mexican heavyweight champion of the world,” he said, wearing a black sombrero as a nod to his country. ”But I know Joshua wants his belts back. I know how it feels to lose – I lost to Joseph Parker when I thought I had won. Joshua can bounce back. My job is not to let him get the belts back.

    ”I’ve had doubters my whole life, telling me I’d do nothing because of my appearance. Just because of how I looked. People can now say, “if he did it, I can do it”.”

  • Argentinian boxer Hugo Santillan dies after collapsing in the ring

     

    An Argentinian boxer has died after a fight making him the second victim of the sport within a week.

    The 23-year-old super lightweight Hugo Santillan died from injuries suffered during a 10-round bout with Uruguayan champion Eduardo Javier Abreu which ended in a draw in San Nicolas, Argentina.

    He collapsed as he raised his arms in celebration at the final bell, and was treated for a brain clot as well as suffering two heart attacks and kidney failure.

    It comes just two days after the death of Russian fighter Maxim Dadashev who suffered a subdural haematoma during a fight in Maryland, USA.

    He was held up by his trainers but as the result was announced he fell to the canvas, and was met by paramedics who gave him oxygen before he was taken to hospital

    The former South American super-featherweight champion, nicknamed ‘Dinamita’ spent five days in a coma in hospital, where he was treated for a clot of the brain

    He also suffered kidney failure, but heart failure was listed as the cause of his death

    The former South American super-featherweight champion, nicknamed ‘Dinamita’ spent five days in a coma in hospital, where he was treated for a clot of the brain. He also suffered kidney failure, but heart failure was listed as the cause of his death

    A subdural haematoma is a condition where a blood vessel located between the skull and brain – in the subdural space – breaks, causing blood to pool there. It is usually the result of a traumatic head injury.

    Because the blood is trapped by the skull it exerts pressure on the brain, causing brain damage.

    Symptoms include dizziness, confusion, vomiting and loss of consciousness.

  • GOtv Boxing Night: WABU President urges support for boxing

    President of the West African Boxing Union (WABU), Remi Aboderin, has called on corporate organisations in the country to emulate pay television service provider, GOtv’s support for Nigerian boxing.

    Aboderin, who is also the Secretary-General of the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control (NBB of C) made the call in Lagos yesterday at the offices of Flykite Promotions, organisers of GOtv Boxing Night, which has been sponsored by GOtv since 2014.

    He noted that the intervention of GOtv in Nigerian boxing has revived the sport, adding that there was a need for many more organisations to support boxing to ensure a speedier return to health.

    “Nobody connected to Nigerian boxing can fail to see the strides being made by the sport since GOtv intervened in 2014. Their intervention, which has seen them invest huge sums, time, organisation, logistics, especially the live broadcast of the event by SuperSport, has rescued our beloved sport from irrelevance. I can tell you that we at the NBB of C are happy, boxers are happy, sub-regional and continental boxing bodies such as the African Boxing Union are also happy for GOtv’s support. The fans, who are crucial to the sport, are similarly delighted,” he said.

    To sustain the momentum, the WABU President urged other corporate organisations to take a leaf out of GOtv’s book, as doing so will ensure Nigerian boxing’s return to full health will be quicker.

    “I want to use this opportunity to plead with corporate organisations to join in the efforts to take Nigerian boxing back into the big time. With more corporate support, it will happen faster. The fact is under five years of sponsoring GOtv Boxing Night and GOtv Boxing NextGen Search, Nigerian boxing has regained prominence on the African and Commonwealth scenes. Our boxers are sought after, as many champions have been made. We need to go a few notches higher and that will happen if others show similar commitment,” he stated.

    GOtv Boxing Night is approaching its 18th edition, which is scheduled to hold at the Indoor Sports Hall of the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium (formerly Liberty), Ibadan, on Sunday. The eight-fight show will feature two international duels, the ABU lightweight title clash between Oto “Joe Boy” Joseph of Nigeria and Ghana’s Success “Brave Warrior” Tetteh and an international light middleweight clash between Akeem “Dodo” Sadiku of Nigeria and Ekpresso Djamihou of the Republic of Benin.