Children in Lagos have taken part in a course as part of the International Boxing Association’s (AIBA) Year of Africa project.
AIBA said a total of 156 children from the Isale-Eko Grammar and Falomo High Schools took part in the initiative in Nigeria’s largest city.
The course was led by AIBA coach instructor Asare Ofori, with the initiative aimed at bringing the sport closer to a new generation of people.
AIBA have expressed their hope that the programme will enable young people to grasp the discipline and dedication required to succeed in the sport, which could be used to aid their own lives.
Joseph Ayeni, the Acting President of the Nigerian Boxing Federation, claimed the education provided by the project was invaluable for young people.
“It has been our absolute pleasure to host the Year of Africa in Nigeria and to see our talented youngsters being encouraged to push themselves and continue their education but also pursue their dreams,” he said.
“I want to thank AIBA for giving this opportunity to the Nigeria Boxing Federation and lending its support to the development of boxing across the continent as a whole, because by working together we will be able to achieve so much more.”
Taishan, who are sponsoring the Year of Africa project, made a significant donation of boxing equipment to help maintain the positive progress experienced in Nigeria, AIBA said.
While the legacy project has been aimed at taking the sport to young people, the governing body have also expressed their hope the additional support and training will aid national federations to raise boxing standards and administrative efficiency across the continent.
Children in Lagos have taken part in a course as part of the International Boxing Association’s (AIBA) Year of Africa project.
AIBA said a total of 156 children from the Isale-Eko Grammar and Falomo High Schools took part in the initiative in Nigeria’s largest city.
The course was led by AIBA coach instructor Asare Ofori, with the initiative aimed at bringing the sport closer to a new generation of people.
AIBA have expressed their hope that the programme will enable young people to grasp the discipline and dedication required to succeed in the sport, which could be used to aid their own lives.
Joseph Ayeni, the Acting President of the Nigerian Boxing Federation, claimed the education provided by the project was invaluable for young people.
“It has been our absolute pleasure to host the Year of Africa in Nigeria and to see our talented youngsters being encouraged to push themselves and continue their education but also pursue their dreams,” he said.
“I want to thank AIBA for giving this opportunity to the Nigeria Boxing Federation and lending its support to the development of boxing across the continent as a whole, because by working together we will be able to achieve so much more.”
Taishan, who are sponsoring the Year of Africa project, made a significant donation of boxing equipment to help maintain the positive progress experienced in Nigeria, AIBA said.
While the legacy project has been aimed at taking the sport to young people, the governing body have also expressed their hope the additional support and training will aid national federations to raise boxing standards and administrative efficiency across the continent.
A week-long one-star coaching course and a GlovesUp programme was held in the city of Khartoum in Sudan as part of the initiative.
The courses were hoped at ensuring best practices are followed in the training of athletes and making sure rules and methods are followed.
AIBA stress the efforts are part of an overall strategic effort to raise the performances of African boxers in international competition.
The GlovesUp programme’s modules place importance on behaviour and ethics and have been specifically designed to encourage boxers to represent their sport and their country with integrity.
Fair play and respect for opponents have also been stressed as key pillars of the project.
The Year of Africa is now set to continue in Sudan.
AIBA launched the Year of Africa 2017 – a continent-wide programme that aims to bring education, empowerment and a lasting legacy for boxing in the region – at the start of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic cycle.
Conceived in collaboration with the African Boxing Confederation and being implemented by the continent’s 54 National Federations, it has a direct reach of more than 750,000.
It will be followed by the Year of the Caribbean initiative next year.
“The EC members who are against me understand that AIBA finance is healthy but still make false allegations. Their agenda is self-explanatory,” said Wu, who has headed AIBA since 2006. “Their failed attempts have been underlined by their last-ditch resort to involve you and the IOC,” he added.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it had no comment on the letter. “As a matter of policy, the IOC does not respond to open letters,” an IOC spokesperson told AFP. “It has taken note of the court decision against the IMC (interim executive committee) in this internal AIBA dispute.”
