Africa’s ‘Don King’ sets sights on Zim

PROMINENT Namibian boxing promoter Nestor Tobias, who last weekend was in the country, has expressed a keen interest to bring his own promotion to the country.

Tobias, of Sunshine Boxing Promotions in Windhoek, is regarded as the “Don King” of African boxing.

He flew to Harare where he watched the just-ended New Dawn boxing show in the company of yet another promoter from Zambia, Christopher Malunga of Oriental Quarries Boxing Promotions, Zambia.

Also in attendance was Charles Manyuchi’s coach from the Zambian stable, Mike Zulu.

There are also indications that OQBP, who on August 26, 2006 put up a tournament in which the darling of Zimbabwean boxing featured for the first time before his home crowd, could also bring a new bill.

The Namibian, who enjoys great financial support from telecommunications giant Mobile Telecommunications Ltd, has under his Sunshine Boxing Promotions banner produced five world champions who include Harry “The Terminator” Simon, Paulus “The Hitman” Moses and Paulus “The Rock” Ambunda.

“I visited to have first-hand appreciation on the ground of what Zimbabwean boxing is like,’’ he told The Saturday Herald.

‘’We have had a number of your boxers coming down to Windhoek upon our invitation to fight, but perhaps now is the time to also bring their Namibian counterparts to Harare to reciprocate the boxing camaraderie that exists between our sister nations.

“It is a known fact that in the past, your country was regarded as a boxing giant and back then you managed to produce continental champions like the legendary Proud ‘Kilimanjar’ Chinembiri.

‘’But it is also fact that the sport of boxing in Zimbabwe has taken a long sleep and it is people like me, Kalakoda and Oriental Quarries who can awaken it from it from the slumber.

‘’I firmly believe that with the talent that you have in abundance here, it will not take a lot of time to place boxing back on its rightful slot as the country’s second most popular sport.”

A good number of local boxers have travelled to Namibia for fights but, with the exception of Manyuchi and Ishmael Takudzwa Kuchocha, the rest have performed dismally.

They have blamed fatigue from the long road travel and biased officiating.