GABA President calls it great, great incentive

Dec 10, 2008 Sports

By Rawle Welch
The recent historic announcement by the International Boxing Association (AIBA) to reward amateur boxers competing at the December 10-14 World Cup Tournament at the Ice Palace in Moscow, Russia is a welcome decision.

A sport which has always attracted participants from the ghettos and slums where aspirants search for ways out of poverty, AIBA had pronounced sometime last year that they will be making efforts to connect the space that divides amateur and professional boxing.

Well, it has now been confirmed that participants at the World Cup which brings together the top 88 amateur fighters in the world, drawn from the last Olympics and World Championship in the 11 divisions will receive as much as US$10,000 for winning the gold medal, while the runner-up pockets US$5,000 and bronze medalists US$2,500.

It was also disclosed that AIBA is hoping to organise one major tournament annually where lucrative prize money will be given.

Even though Guyana do not have a representative in the ring at the World Cup, the mere thought of earning such rewarding prize money in amateur boxing can now serve as another stimulant to drive the sport forward.

There is no doubt that growth has taken place over the past year and with this recent development, it is anticipated that the current batch of young fighters in addition to those to follow will display the kind of dedication and commitment that would allow them to qualify for such incentives.

Guyana’s performance at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India this year was encouraging bearing in mind our athletes suffer from a lack of exposure and even though we gained just one medal, a silver won by Clevon Rock, it was the kind of result that should persuade more support from the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) and Government. Steps must be taken to ensure that those athletes are given the right guidance and coaching to go on to become world champions.

It must never be forgotten that this sport still remains the only one to have earned us a medal at the foremost Games on Planer Earth, the Olympics (Michael Parris in 1980), and judging from the lack of development and the exorbitant cost of equipment to compete in other disciplines, any decision to provide more financial support to sport is welcomed.

Speaking with President of the Guyana Amateur Boxing Association, Affeeze Khan yesterday via telephone, he said that even though he had not heard of the decision, it was a blessing in disguise and one which can encourage the youngsters.

“It is a great, great incentive for the young boxers for the rigorous training they go through and can inspire them to achieve the highest,” Khan pointed out.

He recalled India making a similar move recently where the Government and the Olympic Association offered financial rewards to successful athletes from the Commonwealth Youth Games.

The controversial Khan admitted he would be in favour of such generosity, but added that he alone cannot do so and invited the GOA and the Government to collaborate and make such offers to all our athletes who perform outstandingly.

“It is the way to go, I’ve seen athletes being rewarded by the communities from which they came from and even their schools, but sadly this is not the case in Guyana and this myopic outlook must change in order to encourage our athletes to strive for excellence.”

He added that he was recently asked to shortlist 11 boxers to prepare for the upcoming historic Caribbean Games slated for July in Trinidad and Tobago, but asked how he can keep them motivated and interested until July when there are no incentives in place.

“These guys have to make huge sacrifices in hard economic times to train and buy their own food and supplements to nourish their bodies and GABA is not an entity that is endowed with lots of cash to offset such expenses so in the absence of support by other organisations getting them to train seriously for such a long duration is an arduous task,” Khan stated.

He said athletes are fed up with just medallions; they would like monetary incentives as well.
“This can go a far way in keeping them motivated, money does that,” Khan insisted.

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GABA President calls it great, great incentive

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