Boxers in doubt

qualifiers will run from April 27 to May 6 with participants from different countries expected to battle it out for places for the London 2012 Olympic Games.
The Zimbabwe Amateur Boxing Association technical director, Petros Masiyambumbi, said they had so far been unable to secure funding for the assignment.
The national association was hoping to send UK based fighters — Tamuka Muchapondwa, Simbarashe Mhondiwa and Sylvia Ndlovu — as well as local based Fortunate Chidzivo.
“We have written to different companies for sponsorship but we are not getting any positive response. We need US$20 000 for the trip because even for those in the UK, we need to cater for their travel expenses because they will be representing the nation.
“As for Fortunate she had found a sponsor but then she cannot go alone without a coach. The problem is there is lack of commitment from other members within the association and it’s also contributing to our failure to get sponsors,” said Masiyambumbi.
Meanwhile, the national association is currently conducting a Level One coaching course at KGVI which will end on Friday and will be followed by an open tournament on Saturday at Tomlinson Depot.
The course is being conducted by Masiyambumbi and he said they will be focusing on the basics of boxing.
“The course started on Monday and so far we have 26 coaches from different provinces but the majority are from the army because they always send more people when we have these courses.
“We are saying everyone is free to come and we are still hoping to have more coaches coming during the course of the week. We want to equip people with knowledge on how to work with children of different ages.
“This is a level one course and we are saying most coaches in provinces are not trained so they should attend the course.
“AIBA (International Amateur Boxing Association) have said they will not allow coaches without a national certificate to accompany teams that will be competing at international events.
“So as a national association we are not to accept anyone without proper training to be involved in boxing,” said Masiyambumbi.