Nwankpa Blames NSC For Setback In Nigerian Boxing

As Nigerian sports enthuasists expect the nation's pugilists to win laurels at the forthcoming All African Games in Congo Brazaville, former African and Commonwealth Champion, Obasia Nwankpa, has warned teeming Nigerian sports fans not to expect positive results from the boxers that would be selected for the games.

The number one World Boxing Council, WBC, contender, said the head coach of the Nigeria Boxing Federation, Tony Konyeagwachi and his assistant, Adura Olalehin, lack technical skills of coaching boxers to win international competitions of such magnitude which usually take a serious boxing nation and coach four years to plan in order to achieve remarkable feat.

While regarding Konyegwachi and Olalehin as amatuer coaches whose peers are still active in the game of boxing, Nwankpa said, the coaches did not have pre-requisite coaching certificates or required experience to train pugilists to make the country proud at the All African Games, AAG, adding that, none of the boxers invited to camp are capable of winning Gold medals''.

Nwankpa, who challenged the coaches over their inability to produce All African Games Gold medalists, said the training programme of the coaches was an indication that the boxers would only make up the number of African athletes to the Games without recording success because serious boxing nations had started preparations couple of years ago, unlike the Nigeria Boxing Federation that invited pugilists to camp when the Games would begin in less than two months.

While warning the National Sports Commission, NSC, for the misfortune, the former national coach, said the commission did not enrol the Federation's coaches on regular refresher courses, neither does the NSC deem it necesary to make provisions of quality and modern equipment at the boxing gym, adding that, the boxers invited to camp are not exposed to national competitions, which would have serve as a test to measure their performances.