Disqualified boxer right, but new rule not in effect
Naledi Lemogang | Wednesday March 22, 2017 14:35
On Saturday, BoBA disqualified professional boxer, Mmilili Khutswane from the inter club competition in Gaborone meant for amateurs.
Mosalakgotla admitted in an interview that professional boxers are within their rights to compete in amateur tournaments.
However, BoBA has not implemented the IBA rule that allows professional boxers to participate in amateur tournaments.
He said they still want to regulate the requirement. Mosalakgotla said coaches and clubs are aware that this rule exists, but BoBA has not yet implemented the regulation therefore they should not bring professional boxers to such tournaments.
He said BoBA will make an announcement when the rule comes into effect locally. “We might take long to implement the rule and we know that we are behind the IBA rules and regulations, but all we want is the cooperation of clubs not to bring professional boxers to amateur tournaments for the safety of our boxers,” Mosalakgotla said.
He said there are a lot of things to consider before professionals can feature against amateurs. He said officials for professional bouts are not under BoBA. He defended BoBA saying it is not like they want to implement the rule at a time convenient to them.
Mosalakgotla conceded that they made a mistake last year where a professional boxer from DTCB club participated in amateur tournaments. He further said the boxer was not allowed in a subsequent tournament.
He said this year they have not allowed any professional boxer to participate in amateur tournaments, therefore it was a mistake to allow Khutswane to complete medical check-up and pairing during the weekend tournament.