SOME OF Guyana’s Crème de la Crème of amateur boxing are currently undergoing training – physical, tactical and technical –  under the watchful eyes of Technical Director within the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA) Terrence Poole and national coach attached to the Ministry of Sport, Francisco Hernandez Roldan, at the Andrew ‘Sixhead’ Lewis gym in Albouystown.

In an invited comment with Chronicle Sport yesterday morning, the 49-year-old Poole, who in his own rights is a former amateur heavyweight/super heavyweight champion with a very impressive record, among which he’s the lone Guyanese with four Caribbean gold medals, said he was impressed with the boxers’ preparation to date.
“To date, the boxers’ training has been going great. We are at present in the preparation phase, looking to get them ready and in top shape for not only the two tournaments in Cuba, but also the National Intermediate Boxing Championships that is set for May 24 and 25 at a venue to be named.
“Most of the boxers are getting in shape. They are not peaking at the moment and that is not a concern or even worrying sign for us, as we don’t want them to peak early and when it comes down to either the Intermediate championships or even their departure for Cuba, they are lackadaisical,” said Poole.
Those undergoing training sessions on a daily basis at the venue are welterweights Eon Bancroft and Ron Smith, light middleweight Bert Braithwaite, lightweight Clairmont Gibson, middleweight Dennis Thomas, bantamweight Imran Khan and featherweight Delon Charles.
Female boxer Theresa London was also a part of the session when Chronicle Sport paid a visit to the gym last Sunday morning, while Stephan Gouveia was absent due to personal reasons.
The boxers were seen engaging each other in light and at times heavy toe-to-toe punching exercises, with Roldan having them alternate between orthodox and unorthodox styles per round, while they also used the jab – an important weapon in the sport.
Following their glove work in the ring, their stamina and endurance were tested, when they were charged to complete a certain amount of laps (males 10 and females 6) around the St Pius Primary School ground.
And even though his English is not 100%, it was a wonderful sight to see Roldan, issuing instructions to the group of boxers in the ring, with Poole assisting in getting the point over to them, joyfully.
“He (Roldan) has been a blessing to the amateur boxing fraternity here in Guyana and it is certainly a joy working along with him. Before our sessions, we share ideas and come to a conclusion on what we want to do for that day.
Collectively, we head to the gym with one common goal in mind, and that is to get our amateur boxers from one level to another and to date we are seeing the results slowly, and I know that the stint in Cuba, will further enhance their techniques,” said Poole.
In commenting further on the Intermediate championships, Poole stated that the GBA is looking to have a Jamaican contingent come and do battle with their Guyanese counterparts at the same time, adding that negotiations are still in the pipelines.
“The chance of going up against the Jamaicans is a good one not only for the boxers, but us as coaches, for while they (the boxers) will be using it as a tournament warm-up ahead of their engagement in Cuba, we as coaches can use it to locate any slight difficulties in their techniques, etc.”
Quizzed on the venue for the Intermediate championships, Poole said it was undecided for if the Jamaicans accept the GBA’s invitation, then an indoor venue is the ultimate choice for the local governing body and with the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall undergoing repairs at the moment a question mark lingers over the venue.
While their intense training sessions would not go to naught, as they would have what is taught to them instilled in their minds, it would be a pleasure for the boxers to be given the opportunity to undergo that training stint in Cuba, known as the powerhouse in amateur boxing in this side of the world.
However, the boxers’ participation in Cuba, where they are expected to compete in the Roberto Balado and the Cardova Cardin Boxing Tournaments, scheduled to be held from June 4 to 11 and 15 to 22, 2013, depends heavily on the GBA’s ability to realise the over G$3M that is needed to offset expenses.
GBA president Steve Ninvalle had earlier told Chronicle Sport, “It is important for our boxers to go to Cuba for the two tournaments, since several countries will have boxers of quality competing there and it will provide us with a chance to see where we are, as it relates to a boxer medalling at the 2016 Olympics.
“We have the talent here, but it would make no sense, the boxers stay here and compete against one another regularly and when they go to tournaments such as the Pan Am Games and Central American and Caribbean (CAC) boxing championships, they are found wanting in more ways than one.”