….2nd of 3 for the year
FOLLOWING the successful inaugural Under-16 boxing championships last July, through the kind courtesy of Demerara Distillers Limited’s (DDL) Pepsi/Gatorade brand of products, the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA) will from tomorrow punch off their second of three champions for the same age group at the Andrew ‘Six Heads’ Lewis gym in Albouystown.This was disclosed by president of the GBA and Deputy Permanent Secretary within the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (MCYS), Steve Ninvalle, at a simple press briefing which was hosted by DDL at the Mandela Avenue based Distribution Services Limited (DSL) Outlet yesterday.
Present were DDL’s Pepsi/Gatorade Sales Manager, Alexis Crawford-Langhorne, Technical Director of the GBA, Terrence Poole, and members of the media. Crawford-Langhorne told of DDL’s delight to be associated with the Under-16 championships once again.
“We at DDL, with our brands Pepsi and Gatorade, are once again pleased to partner with the GBA for the second of three Pepsi/Gatorade tournament to be held over the weekend.
“At DDL, we are always looking for opportunities to give back to the communities in which we operate, and this tournament is one of many ways we have decided to do so, since it caught our attention. The tournament provides gainful engagement for our young people who are the core of the Pepsi fan base,” related Crawford-Langhorne.
She added, “Since the launch, we have seen some of the young boxers moving on to represent Guyana in overseas tournaments and this shows that the tournament had has a positive effect on our young boxers.
“As the official sponsor of this event, we are pleased with the way in which the tournaments are being executed and continue to be amazed at the level of professionalism executed by these young boxers, who during the course of the upcoming tournament, will be rehydrated by the world’s number one Sport’s drink, Gatorade.”
Crawford-Langhorne thanked the GBA for giving her Company another opportunity to show their support behind the nation’s future in the fistic sport, while she called on all and sundry to come out and support the young talents who will be on show.
In his opening remarks, Ninvalle said that the GBA is not only focusing on promoting the sport at the amateur level as they are tasked with, but they are also serious about the health and well being of the boxers which is paramount, along with discipline.
“We intend to keep the health and well being of the boxers paramount and I wish to say that we will be looking into the safety of our boxers, officials and patrons who turn out to give of their support at these upcoming championships, this weekend.”
“On the same note, I would like to go on record as saying that the GBA for the past three months have had an upsurge with the organizing of various championships, such as Intermediate, Novices, Open, and now this second Under-16 Championships and this speaks volumes.
“However, we are keen on discipline amongst our officials and athletes and will not encourage any official or athlete to be indisciplined, with one incident surfacing during our last championships in Bartica, which will be looked at and dealt with severely by the GBA’s Discipline Committee,” said Ninvalle.
According to Poole, eight gyms will be vying for supremacy over the two days of action in Albouystown, listing amongst them, Linden, Forgotten Youth Foundation, Harpy Eagles, Rose Hall Jammers and Bartica who will be making their debut.
“We invited Bartica, since we saw lots of talent when we were last there and it is only fitting that in order for us to harness this talent, we invite them down to compete,” stated Poole.
The action punches off at 10:00hrs on both days, with prizes for Best Gym and Boxer being up for grabs, while the various winners will be awarded medallions.

(By Calvin Roberts)