Talent search for kick-boxers

kick-boxers from across the country as the national association seeks to identify new talent and also prepare for the African championships.
Kurimira, who is part of the team going to Madagascar, said he is taking the tournament seriously as part of his preparations.
“I think this coming tournament is going to determine if we are ready for the championships. We have been preparing since last year.
“Now we are only polishing our skills and techniques and also working on endurance. I think as a kick-boxer I am ready to go,” said Kurimira.
His counterpart, Bernard Roben, who is set to fight for honours in the middleweight division, said he was also raring to go.
“I am prepared for the tournament I have been training. I am taking this tournament seriously because we are going to Madagascar and we have to perform well.
“I will be treating each competitor equally because everyone will be looking forward to winning and I will also be expecting to win,” said Roben.
Roben, who last competed in a competitive match last year, said the tournament was a good platform to assess his preparations for the continental event.
“It’s going to help me and the other guys. I last fought a guy from Finland last year in November. We were supposed to have some matches but unfortunately lack of resources has also affected us because if there is no cash there is nothing we can do,” added Roben.
Zimbabwe Kickboxing Association president, Tony Kamangira, said they will use the event to identify up-and-coming kick-boxers.
“The tournament is on and we are running around to finalise some loose ends. We are expecting around 50 fighters from different provinces since this is an open tournament.
“We are going to have all the 12 weight categories. This event is open to everyone unlike the Heroes Cup, where we were specifically targeting those that were preparing for international events, we want everyone to compete. We expect to see more new guys at the tournament and we want to assess the up-and-coming fighters,” said Kamangira.
Some of the provinces expected to field fighters are Harare, Manicaland, Matabeleland South, Mashonaland East and Matabeleland North.