Convention set for Boksburg

Boxing SA‚ the national department of Sport and Recreation and the African Union Sport Council (AUSC) Region 5 will host the first Southern African Boxing Convention (SABC) in May‚ Boxing SA CE Tsholofelo Lejaka has announced.

He said 15 countries in the SADC region would meet at Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg from May 23-25, coinciding with the Africa Month Celebration.

“The big idea is to have this convention as a permanent feature on the annual calendar of all Boxing Commissions in the region so that we can continue to draw strength from each other as we grow boxing within our own jurisdictions‚ most importantly in the Southern Region and the entire African continent‚” said Lejaka.

“For now it is but a seed‚ but as we continue to nurture it this seed will surely germinate and grow into a huge Baobab tree under which the boxing community will continue to converge on an annual basis.”

Lejaka said this was part of the broader Africa Month Celebration programme of the Southern Region.

“The programme of the convention will also include a regional boxing tournament to celebrate Africa Day on May 25‚” he said. The tournament would be at the Portuguese Hall in the south of Johannesburg.

“The fighters billed to take part are drawn from the different countries in the Southern Region‚” he said.

Among the participating countries were Tanzania‚ Botswana‚ Congo‚ Namibia‚ Malawi‚ Swaziland‚ Zimbabwe‚ Lesotho‚ Zambia‚ Madagascar‚ Mozambique‚ Seychelles‚ Angola and Mauritius.

“Of course‚ not all countries in the Southern Region have fully functional Boxing Commission or a vibrant boxing culture at professional level‚” he said.

The intentions of the convention include leveraging the strength of relatively developed countries in terms of boxing culture and assist growth in the rest of the region.

In the main‚ this inaugural convention would focus on fundamental issues that underpin boxing governance and administration such as:

● Boxing legislation and boxing regulations ● Management of purse money ● Sanctioning of tournaments ● Ratings of boxers and licensing of boxers

● Accreditation of practitioners in boxers such as paramedics‚ ringside physicians‚ lawyers

● Recognition and reward programmes like boxing awards

● Training and promotion of fair-play (anti-doping)

● Relationship with world sanctioning bodies such as WBF‚ IBO‚ IBF‚ WBA‚ WBC and WBO

● Marketing‚ broadcasts and the sponsorship of boxing. /