Prisons aim to tighten grip on local boxing

Calistus Kolantsho | Friday January 27, 2017 15:06

The club won the affiliate of the year award during the 2016 Botswana Boxing Association (BoBA) awards with Mpigi lifting the coach of the year silverware.

The club intends to continue where it left off, as the 2017 boxing calendar kicks-off next week with the inter-club championship at the University of Botswana. Mpigi was beaming with confidence when Mmegi Sport caught up with him at training session this week. He said the plan is to defend all the awards they won last year.

 Mpigi said his boxers are determined to grow, adding it is important for boxers to set targets every year and work hard to achieve them.

“I want to see my boxers progressing. Boxing is a big industry and our local athletes should dream beyond our borders. They should be able to go out there and become some of the best boxers in the industry,” he said.

Mpigi said his club intends to recruit more youngsters. The coach joined the club in 2015. Mpigi said he joined Prisons because he wanted to be part of the club that had a vision that he believed in.

He said at the peak of his boxing days, he was part of the Uganda national team and he still has love for the sport. Mpigi said Prisons has enough resources that has the potential to produce some of the best boxers in the country.

The founder of the club, Gibson Rauwe said the club, formed in 2010 started off with youngsters and taught them basic boxing skills. Rauwe said they set themselves targets that included having a boxer in the national team by 2012. The target was achieved when Mmusi Tswiigi was picked for the national side.

He said the other target was to have women boxers in the club, which they have also achieved.

“We had women in the club but due to unforeseen circumstances, we lost them along the way. We are working with Nanogang Junior Secondary School because we want to have strong grassroots development,” Rauwe said.

He said the grassroots programme is already producing results with the inclusion of Atang Mosinki who was selected to the national team. Rauwe said the driving force behind their success is to bring medals from all tournaments they take part in. He said they have not changed anything from the way they have been training from last year.

Rauwe said they have 12 boxers that would compete next week. Some of the new names that have joined the club are Kenneth Otsweleng (81kg) and Motlamedi Segonwana (52kg).  He said the club has the potential to attract more boxers, which is why they have opened a branch in Moshupa.  He said they opened the branch in Moshupa to avoid tension among boxers who compete in similar categories.

Meanwhile, Rauwe said their star boxer, Tswiigi is currently training at Prisons College, but they always travel to the college to assist him with a training programme. He said they want him to compete in all BoBA tournaments so that he can return to the national team.