Boxing: Victoria Open Competition |29 January 2024
Pugilists in a souvenir photo with the sponsors and Ps Jean-Louis
Great sign of hope for Seychelles’ boxing at the year’s inaugural tournament
Resuming their campaign after the 11th Indian Ocean Islands Games, the Seychelles Boxing Federation hosted its first tournament for the year last Saturday at the Victoria Gymnasium, where it also received a new boxing ring from the government.
There were 12 bouts on the programme of which one was an exhibition match between two female pugilists, namely Emma Payet and Elsa Savy.
The tournament was graced by the presence of President Wavel Ramkalawan, who brought his support to the pugilists, and one of the most appreciated local sports.
President Ramkalawan said he was happy to see the youth’s passion and drive to develop their abilities in the sport and from what he observed, he is hopeful that Seychelles may regain the King of the Indian Ocean title.
Also present was principal secretary for Youth and Sports Ralph Jean-Louis who said the new ring is a gift from the government for the boxers’ good performance at the last Indian Ocean Islands Games (IOIG) in Madagascar.
He added that the new asset should inspire the federation and the young pugilists to pursue further into boxing and make the country proud.
The competition began with two junior category fights whereby Jadel Brutus triumphed 3-0 over Joshua Morel in the 35kg category and Ezekiel Nourice won 2-1 over Daniel Morin in the 40kg category.
In the youth division, Gabriel Victor lost 0-3 to Alfred Joseph in the 66kg, while Wess Jean-Charles beat Nahym Pillay 3-0 in the 82kg.
Mervin Benoit defeated Jude Belize 2-1 in the 55kg and Jade Micock overpowered Praslinois Emery Molle 2-1 in the 75kg bout.
In the elite group, the first bout was between prolific Joshua Cousin and Michael Benoit in the 75kg category and within one minute of the first round, Benoit was forced to abandon the fight as he could not withstand Cousin’s ferocious combos.
In the 60kg category, Dario Victor surprised the crowd when he won his bout by knockout against Ramesh Legaie, while, Arshild David defeated Dario Gabriel 3-0.
Ivan Rachel also known as ‘Dokter’ lost 0-3 to powerhouse Shain Boniface who was also the best fighter of the tournament.
The last bout of the competition was between Jovanie Bouzin and Praslinois Greth Estico, with the former registering a 2-1 victory.
Text and photos Neil Sirame
