Welland fight club claims gold medals
Victoria Pagendam didn’t leave anything in the ring, nor any doubt among the panel of judges, when she battled for women’s boxing bragging rights at the Brampton Cup tournament.
The 20-year-old Thorold native and the daughter of Olympian Jamie Pagendam earned a unanimous decision over Erika Cusupanan of Toronto in the elite novice women’s 48-kilogram division. Pagendam, who trains out of Nappers Boxing Club in Welland, kept pressure on Cusupanan throughout the three-round fight by landing hard combinations.
Coach Ray Napper was proud of his fighter’s performance at the prestigious tournament.
“Victoria did great in Brampton,” he said. “She has a ton of potential, and it was great seeing her work hard and get her victory.”
Jamie Pagendam boxed for Canada and lost in a second-round walkover to Kirkor Kirkorov in the featherweight division at 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. His older brother Steve, fighting in the same division, lost to Paul Fitzgerald of Ireland in the second round of the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles.
“Victoria comes from a family boxing tradition and she is keeping it alive and well,” Napper said. “We are very proud of her.”
Dhumisani Masanzu, 23, of Welland earned a split decision over Mississauga’s Thomasz Hulobiczko in the 81-kg elite sub-novice division final after beating Anton Khrapach, also from Mississauga, in the semifinals. Masanzu used long stiff jabs, upper cuts and body punches to control the bout against Hulobiczko for the gold medal.
“D did great in this tournament,” his coach said. “D has heavy hands, good skill, and he is a hard worker.”
Heading into the the tournament Dhumisani’s “very positive personality” often showed itself in the gym. Napper recalled the fighter would often say “Brampton Cup gold, baby” while training.
“It was nice to see him excited to work hard and get what he deserves,” Napper said. “We are excited to see what he can do in the future.”
After claiming gold on a walkover in the youth 46-kg sub-novice, Derek Cook, 16, of Welland was no match for Connor Synishin of Nova Scotia in a makeup bout. Cook, hoping to nullify Synishin’s aggressive style with counter punches, came up short and lost to his more-experienced opponent by a unanimous decision.
“Derek did all of us really proud at Nappers, he is our heart and soul down there” Napper said. “He works really hard every night, and I have never been so happy for someone to get in the ring and box.”
“Derek landed some really nice punches in the bout. “He will be even more ready next time.”
With no one to fight in their divisions, Canadian champion Christian Zelenco, 16, of Ridgeway and Samantha Pinckney, 15, of Welland won gold medals for the Welland club in walkovers.
Zelenco will be in Quebec City later this month defending her national title.