Yucateco Boxing Promotions have been commended for staging a one-day championship in Kano State as part of its efforts to develop Olympics grade boxers in the country.
The event held at the Sports Arena of the Nigerian Army Brigade Headquarters at Bukavu Barracks in Kano, featured pugilists from Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, and host Kano state.
The initiator of the event and the Chief Executive Officer CEO of Yucateco Boxing Promotions, Omonlei Yakubu Imadu, said the aim behind the championship was to reawaken the boxing culture in the northern region.
“The north has so much boxing potentials that has been left undiscovered for too long, championship of this nature is important in our quest to bring boxing back to its glory days in this part of the country,” he said.
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The president of the Boxing Promoters Association of Nigeria (BPAN) further highlighted Yucateco’s readiness to sponsor selected boxing Referees and Judges from the Northwest for the International Boxing Association (IBA) training course in the coming months.
” We are not just focusing on the boxers, boxing development is holistic hence our resolve to sponsor selected referees and Judges for the next (IBA) training programs, this i believe will immensely upgrade their knowledge of the game,” he said.
The Special guest of honour Brig. Gen. A.M Tukur, Commander 3 brigade headquarters of the Nigerian army, urge more individuals and corporate bodies to emulate the Yucateco boxing development model.
“This is a very laudable initiative and I must commend Mr. Omonlei Imadu for bringing this to Kano, Nigerian boxing needs a more pragmatic approach to get back to its glory days and it’s heart-warming to note that Yucateco is already taking a lead by introducing a novel boxing league.”
Tagged ‘Reigniting The Northwest Boxing Culture’ , the championship headlines the week-12 hostilities of the on-going Yucateco boxing league.
With 24 pugilists on the 12 bouts fight card, the tournament gave boxing fans plenty to savour.
In the 46-48 kg contest, Zakariyya Ado from Kaduna defeated Abubakar Salisu of Zamfara state, Sani Ali Bashir from Katsina lost to Muhammad Tarik of Kano.
The 54 kg brawl also brought about some gusty battles as Abubakar Ibrahim of Kano triumphed over Rabiu Yahuza of Sokoto, Ali Rabiu from Katsina down Faruk Ibrahim, Bashir Ali of Katsina came tops over Iro Ibrahim of Kano State.
Some of the highpoints of the event was the presentation of the prestigious Yucateco Boxing Recognition Award to selected sports stakeholders in the northwest zone, as well as the donation of boxing gloves and other training equipment to the Kano State Boxing Association by Yucateco Boxing Promotions.
A total of 305 bouts have been completed in the on-going Yucateco boxing league with 12 accredited boxing clubs vying for the grand prize of N50 Million naira.
