24 Aug 2016

Ghanzi Meat Festival has come to the rescue of Ghanzi Boxing club and offered a two year technical sponsorship.

One of the organisers of Ghanzi Meat Festival  Metheo Ditlhabang revealed in an interview that their interest to sponsor the club was due to the love and commitment of coach Phuthego “Mr Magic Man”  Sakhu-Mathaithai towards his boxers. 

Ghanzi Boxing club which has been in existence for six years has been operating under  a shoe string budget and sometime no budget at all as everything was upon coach Sakhu-Mathaithai.

Ditlhabang noted that as Ghanzi Meat Festival they believed in empowering the youth, and shared coach Sakhu-Mathaithai's vision of getting them off streets and do something meaningful of their lives.

He said in the past Ghanzi Boxing club coach had dedicated his time to instill discipline among the youth in Ghanzi and building them into better citizens of the community and the nation. Therefore, he said they did not only seek support of the community in a one day meat festival but also give back to the community where their assistance would be of great use and beneficial to the youth. 

He further indicated that art and sport were one, and that they could not be separated, hence their involvement in boxing. He said they were committed to developing, empowering and nurturing talent within the community of Ghanzi. 

Having started with inexperienced boxers in 2010, Sakhu-Mathaithai indicated that his club was now ranked third in Botswana out of 18 clubs. He said that was an achievement as Ghanzi boxing club was a relatively small club. Therefore news of sponsorship to him came at an opportune time when his club was growing and making a mark in many tournaments and competitions. 

He indicated that with the sponsorship which entailed technical support and transport logistics their journey was now smoother.

Sakhu-Mathaithai indicated that some of the challenges they faced as a club will be curbed by this two year sponsorship. He said such challenges hindered them from competing well at crucial competitions as at times they had to travel same day of the tournaments, as well as travelling long distances from Ghanzi using public transport. That, Sakhu-Mathaithai explained that was a setback to his club as they could not perform well in tournaments due to exhaustion and fatigue. 

The sponsorship, Sakhu-Mathaithai also noted will rescue him from the burden that he carried for many years making sacrifices for the team for the love he had for the sport. He said at times he had to pay from his pocket and get the team some training equipment's as well as see to their welfare in the club especially when they had to travel for tournaments and competitions. 

According to Sakhu-Mathaithai, Ghanzi boxing club started off with only 10 boxers with the likes of Gillian Ditshwene and Tshepo Stoffel back then, adding that by 2011 he had two teams in his club of development and elite boxers. 

Sakhu-Mathaithai noted that it was in 2011 that his club entered the Mooka Mageu competition and his elite team won a bronze medal. He further explained that in 2012 he had to send the likes of Mmusi Tswiige to Prisons Boxing club due to sponsorship constraints 

  Today Tswiige is one of the great boxers that Sakhu-Mathaithai groomed. Also under his leadership, Sakhu-Mathaithai indicated that he produced two athletes from Ghanzi Township under his club at the 2015 Botswana Games. Ends