Boxers, Choombe and Kaonga expected at World Boxing championships

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EXPLOSIVE lightweight boxer, Mbachi Kaonga and light-welterweight Gilbert Choombe are next week expected to leave for the World Boxing championships set for Kazakhstan in Eastern Europe.
Kaonga has had a rip-roaring year which was highlighted by two famous wins during the Zone Six under-20 games and the just-ended United Nations World Tourism Conference (UNWTO) tournament in which his opponents ended up in hospital.
For Choombe, he was at the last Summer Olympics in London, though did not do well, but reaped a silver medal from this year’s regional championships in Botswana.
The two will travel with highly exposed boxer-turned coach Kennedy Kanyanta on their one-month outing to Kazakhstan.
The training camp will run from September 27 to October 11 and then go straight into the championship which will last another two weeks.
Zambia Amateur Boxing Federation (ZABF) president, Thomas Chileshe revealed yesterday that the Association of International Amateur Boxing (AIBA) requested Zambia to send Kaonga and Choombe to the World games.
Chileshe explained that apart from the boxing tournament, the two boxers will be exposed to the AIBA road map (training camp) where all participants to the tournament will be trained before the competition starts.
He said that would give the boxers chance to train in modern facilities and to interact with boxers and officials from across the world, a situation he said would boost their confidence.
“This is very good for the boxers. These are positive strides needed as we chase medals,” he said.
“Right now, we are just waiting for the final flight details, but it is a great honour to have these two boxers at the World Championships.
“These are two highly exciting and talented boxers who can get rid of the wind of failure,” he said.
He paid glowing tribute to Kaonga who he said despite being young was just about the best amateur boxer in the country and when well tutored could go on to win Zambia the much desired gold medal at the Olympics.
“Choombe is also an excellent boxer with good footwork. He has great exposure and was at last year’s summer Olympics in London. He is the reason AIBA came to ask for a boxer and then also asked for Kaonga,” he said.

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