BoBA sent a developmental squad to the Swazi tourney and Kemoen dismissed talk that the low entry favoured Botswana to retain the title. He said the competition could not be called off just because other countries did not turn up.
"We won the championships in Botswana last year where 10 countries were competing," Kemoen added. He appealed to Batswana not to doubt the team's capability saying the results are a true reflection of the boxers' strength. However, he was reluctant to admit that the few entries affected the standards of the competition. "Where there are few competitors, one works even harder because you know that a single mistake can cost you," he said. Kemoen added that the competition started late with the hope that more countries would show up. He said that the competition has been hit by a low turn-out before but the Swazi event was the worst because only three countries - Botswana, Lesotho and the hosts - participated. He asserted that Swaziland boxing officials felt they were sabotaged because they are a small nation. Five countries that had initially confirmed participation pulled out at the last minute citing financial constraints.
