Brown ready for Tokyo despite inactivity
ALTHOUGH HE has not fought competitively in over a year, boxer Ricardo ‘Big 12’ Brown heads into the Tokyo Olympics this summer intent on landing a gold medal.
Brown, Jamaica’s lone entrant in Olympic boxing this year, will compete in the heavyweight class.
He describes his preparation for the Games as having gone particularly well, and said he is in top physical condition. This, he says, is because his coach, Dewith Fraser, has provided him with the confidence and the game plan he needs to succeed this summer.
“I am just getting ready to leave on Friday for Japan. Right now I am a hundred per cent in good condition,” Brown said. “I have not fought for a while, but I am ready. It will not be an issue. My last fight was February 5 last year, and competitive fights are different (from sparring) yes, but that will not be a problem for me.
“Once you go in with a game plan, you’ll do what you have to do to come out a winner, and my focus is to win.
“I have a coach and he sits and talks with me and he motivates me a lot. Once he continues to talk to me, everything will be good.”
Brown does not yet know his opponent at the Olympics, but he is fully aware of the challengers to the crown, and he considers himself one of the favourites for the gold.
‘I have not fought for a while, but I am ready. It will not be an issue. My last fight was February 5 last year, and competitive fights are different (from sparring) yes, but that will not be a problem for me.’
“I don’t know who I am going to fight, but I know I am in the top three, so I feel good about my chances,” he said. “I am keeping myself mentally ready, so I’m not overstressing myself. I have every thing in place already. I am just waiting for the fight time to come and my hands will do the talking. So I am ready.”