Witpoortjie boxers shine in the ring
'I believe he would have been a champion, given the opportunity'
Three boxers from the Vikings boxing Academy had a chance to showcase their skills at a tournament held after the Gauteng schoolboy and -girls championships.
Phillip du Randt, the Vikings’ head coach, explained, “The boxers could not fight in the championships for a variety of reasons. One of them was Aphelele Msomi, who did not reach the minimum weight of 30kg to qualify, and, because there were only a few fights, the organisers decided to hold an additional tournament.”
His first boxer, Aphelele, showed that he would be a force to reckon with at next year’s championships, when he won his fight on points. “He boxed like a true champion, and I am of the opinion that, had he qualified for this year’s championships, he would definitely have been crowned as a Gauteng champion,” Phillip said.
Shawn Murahva, who fought in his first fight, did not play around, and won on a first round knock out.
Jo-Lee van Tonder’s opponent was from Ekhuruleni, but, unfortunately Phillip had to withdraw her after the first round. He said, “Her opponent was one grading higher than her, and very strong. So, to avoid unnecessary injuries, I decided it would be better to withdraw her from the fight.”
He added that he was very proud of all of his boxers, win or lose, and concluded by saying, “It takes a lot of courage to put on a pair of boxing gloves and climb through those ropes to face your opponent in the ring.”
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