Online Reporter
Zimpapers Sports Hub
PROFESSIONAL boxing is set for a long-awaited return to Bulawayo as the city prepares to host a major tournament during the KUZANA CEEZ Sports and Arts Symposium, which will run from October 7 to 11 at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF).
The tournament, sanctioned by the Zimbabwe National Boxing and Wrestling Control Board, is being jointly organised by Box Africa, Mau Mau Boxing and Delta Force Boxing Academy. Several other promoters have also been brought on board to strengthen the organising team and help assemble a competitive and entertaining professional boxing card.
For a city that once stood among Zimbabwe’s boxing powerhouses, the return of professional boxing to Bulawayo is about more than staging another tournament. It represents an effort to revive a proud sporting tradition and rekindle memories of an era when boxing drew huge crowds to venues such as Windermere, Large City Hall and Reynolds Inn.
Bulawayo was once home to some of the country’s most celebrated fighters, including the late Proud “Kilimanjaro” Chinembiri, Ambrose Mlilo, Nokuthula Tshabangu, Sipho Moyo, Fredrick Chisoro,
Thamsanqa Dube, Bright Spider, Trust Ndlovu and Kid Power Mutambisi, many of whom established their boxing base in the city and contributed to its rich pugilistic heritage.
The city has also produced and nurtured a remarkable crop of fighters, among them Otis Manyuchi,
Vincent Muziri, Tony Benson and Modicai Donga.
It is therefore a source of concern for boxing stakeholders that a city with such a proud history has gone for so long without hosting a major professional boxing tournament.
The forthcoming event is intended to help reverse that trend by providing Bulawayo’s boxing fraternity, particularly fighters, trainers, administrators and fans, with a platform to rebuild and grow the sport.
The organisers also believe that the revival should include recognising those who laid the foundations of boxing in the city.
Among them are the late promoter Jeff Dube, Phillip Striker, Richard Huni and Never Chipo Mandizha-Ncube, whose contributions remain an important part of Bulawayo’s boxing legacy. Organisers are exploring ways of honouring these departed personalities, including the possibility of staging a special bout in Dube’s name as part of the tournament.
“We want this tournament to be more than just a night of boxing,” the organisers said. “We want it to reconnect Bulawayo with its boxing past, honour those who built the sport and inspire a new generation of fighters and fans.”
Sibanda: Preparations at an advanced stage
Bulawayo boxing coach Anderson Sibanda said preparations for the tournament were already at an advanced stage, with excitement growing within the local boxing fraternity ahead of the sport’s return.
“Preparations are at an advanced stage and the boxers are responding very well. There is a lot of excitement among the local fighters because they know what it means to have professional boxing back in Bulawayo. We have a responsibility to make sure that when the opportunity comes, we put on a performance that the people of Bulawayo will be proud of,” said Sibanda.
He said the tournament was particularly significant because it would give local professional boxers a rare opportunity to compete in front of their home supporters, something that has been missing for many years.
A card designed to bring back the excitement
The organisers have engaged several promoters and boxing stakeholders to complement the three principal organising entities and ensure a high-quality professional boxing card.
The aim is to deliver a balanced programme featuring some of the country’s established professionals alongside emerging talent, with Bulawayo-based boxers expected to play a leading role.
The participation of local fighters such as Sehli Nhliziyo and Chiyangwa is expected to add a strong home-grown flavour to the tournament and give Bulawayo fans boxers of their own to rally behind.
The event will form part of the broader Kuzana CEEZ Sports and Arts Symposium, which is expected to bring together sport, music, arts and cultural activities, giving boxing an opportunity to share the spotlight with other forms of entertainment.
While music lovers and football enthusiasts will have attractions of their own during the festival, boxing organisers are determined to ensure that the sweet science delivers an equally memorable spectacle.
The tournament is therefore being positioned not merely as a sporting event, but as a homecoming for Bulawayo boxing, an opportunity to reconnect generations of supporters with a sport that once regularly filled the city’s venues and generated enormous excitement.
For an emerging generation of fighters, it will also provide a chance to write a new chapter in a story that began decades ago.
The organisers believe that by combining the experience of established promoters, the enthusiasm of local trainers and boxers, and the support of the city’s sporting community, Bulawayo can once again establish itself as an important destination on Zimbabwe’s professional boxing map.
