Four amateur boxers departed Guyana’s shores on Saturday to commence a three-month training stint in Cuba.
Guyanese boxers Keevin Allicock, Colin Lewis, Desmond Amsterdam and Dennis Thomas
Over the next three months, Keevin Allicock, Colin Lewis, Desmond Amsterdam and Dennis Thomas will have the opportunity of a lifetime as they embark on a training stint in Cuba.
Accompanied by coaches Terrence Poole and Sebert Blake, the four boxers will travel to Panama before making their way to Cuba, where they are expected to be joined by Coach Roland Francisco for the training period.
This stint is expected to give the Guyanese pugilists ample preparation and conditioning to enable them to participate in the Olympic qualifiers scheduled for March.
The team was given a grand send-off at the National Gymnasium on Saturday morning, with Guyana Olympic Association President K. A. Juman-Yassin wishing them well and pledging another million dollars for their Olympic qualifier travels.
“I’m very confident that we (have) got a good chance, but you know the Cubans will also be there in Argentina, and you’re training in their country. So, you got to think about that and perform a step higher,” Yassin urged.
“What I could promise you now (is) that, for the qualifying tournament in Argentina, I think the GOA can commit ourselves to a million dollars for airfares or whatever, at least for you guys to go,” the GOA President further stated.
In expressing his gratitude to the chief contributors to the training stint, such as the Guyana Olympic Association and the National Sports Commission, Guyana Boxing Association President Steve Ninvalle disclosed that such an extended trip has not been made by Guyanese boxers in over a decade.
“We have put all the preparation in place for the young boxers, and it is now up to them; we have paved the way. It is the first time, I think, in over 12 or 13 years that we will have a contingent going anywhere for such and extended time. I would like to thank profusely the NSC and the GOA for making sure that this can be realized,” Ninvalle expressed.
The four boxers are eagerly looking forward to the three-month engagement. They will be headed by team captain Colin Lewis. With intentions to better their boxing all round, here’s what the team had to say:
“This is another step in my amateur career, and there’s been a lot that I’ve been told about to work on. It’s been highlighted to me, so I’m going there with a plan. I have my coach, and we also have the Cuban coach; so we’ll all work on that together to make a big step forward towards Tokyo,” Colin Lewis posited.
“Well, you know I’m looking forward to becoming stronger. The qualifiers, by God’s grace, hopefully we come away with medals and get to Cuba after that,” Keevin Allicock noted.
“My expectation is to work on my physical and my skills, because that is something that I’m down on. So, it’s all about working on my skill, focus, and going to the qualification and do good,” Desmond Amsterdam shared.
“I was in Cuba in 2014 in a tournament, and I did a lot of sparring; so, there’s no difference from Cuba to Guyana, they have the same talent. We were doing strength right here, strength and speed, so just the constant competition and the physical parts of boxing into the tournament (are missing),” Dennis Thomas explained.
While the boxers will be training for the next three months, the Olympic qualifiers in Argentina are scheduled for March 26 to April 3. The GOA had contributed US$15,000 to the Cuban trip, while the NSC has made an initial donation of $1M and pledged an additional sum of greater value by the end of January. (Jemima Holmes)
