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Guyana’s attendance at IBA Golden Belt Series in Morocco in limbo
By Rawle Toney
Kaieteur News – Guyana’s participation at the International Boxing Association (IBA) IBA World Boxing Tour Golden Belt Series Tournament in Morocco hangs in a balance according to president of the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA), Steve Ninvalle.
While Keevin Allicock, Desmond Amsterdam and Colin Lewis have been selected and registered for the tournament in Marrakech, January 31 – February 12, Ninvalle highlighted that with airfare of USD 3,450 per boxer and Coach Terrence Poole, the country’s attendance will be deliberated.
“Airfare will be the determining factor with regards to if we attend the Championship or not. The airfare is staggering, and we haven’t factor-in accommodation, per diem and other expenses yet,” Ninvalle said.
Desmond Amsterdam, Keevin Allicock and Colin Lewis at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England (Rawle Toney Photo)
According to IBA, the tournament in Marrakech will become the third event of the World Boxing Tour.
The World Boxing Tour (WBT) consists of a series of events that are classified into four categories; the Diamond Belt, Golden Belt, Silver Belt and Bronze Belt tournaments.
The IBA highlighted that the WBT tournaments will contribute to the new IBA ranking system, which will allow boxers to collect valuable points in each tournament.
These points will help define not only the most successful boxers at the end of the year but also the most successful National Federations, having generated the highest results throughout the season.
GBA president, Steve Ninvalle
Meanwhile, Ninvalle said the GBA though understanding the importance of the tournament in Morocco will have to choose between sending a team to the North African country or the IBA Male and Female World Championships.
The IBA Women’s Championship will take place in India, March 15-31, while the Men’s Championship is set for Tashkent, Uzbekistan, May 1 – 14.
“Attending the World Championships is a must,” Ninvalle said while adding, “We’ve sent teams to the last two World Championships, but this time around we are also attending the Women’s World Championship. That is for certain,” the GBA president noted.
Ninvalle pointed out that Abiola Jackman will be heading to New Delhi as the GBA shifts their focus and attention to give more exposure to their skilled female boxers.
“We have the second edition of the Patrick Forde Memorial on February 19 and we’re doing that with Alfred McDonald. We haven’t had them since 2019 and that’s because of COVID and several other factors, but we’re happy to have it back this year,” Ninvalle said.
Ninvalle stated that Trinidad and Tobago agreed to send two female boxers and they will touch gloves with the Jackman sisters (Abiola and Alesha).
“We haven’t had any competition in a while for our female boxers. So, we want to ensure, at least for the next four years, we have regular competition for them,” the GBA head said.
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