“Every setback fuels my determination to succeed” – Guyana’s female boxer, Abiola Jackman

The Guyana Boxing Association (GBA) recently sent its largest-ever contingent to the Caribbean Boxing Championship in St. Lucia comprising 16 elite and emerging fighters. At the end of the tournament, the team secured nine gold, three silver and two bronze medals.

One such boxers who dominated the tournament was 23-yer-old Abiola Jackman of East Ruimveldt, Georgetown who was successful in the 80kg class. Apart from this medal, she has several other accolades from defeating her opponents, locally.
Jackman is one of two sisters in the family who are professional boxers – a male dominated sport but despite the challenges, they rallied through and are now competing on the international stage.
For Abiola, it all started at the age of 15 years when she stepped into the Forgotten Youth Foundation Boxing Gym in Albouystown and immediately felt a passion for the sport. Cognizant that the sport is male-dominated, she had to work extra hard to prove herself.

After intense training and clearance from her coaches, she finally secured her first fight against Jolicia Rodney from Lethem Boxing Gym. “It was a mixture of excitement and nerves. I was determined to give my best, and when the match started, I just focused on executing what I had learned in training,” she reminisced.
That first fight was what ignited the flame to continue but this would mean mastering the art for the bi stage. Under the stewardship of her coaches – Sebert Blake, Lennox Daniels, Francisco Roland and Joseph Murray she managed to balance here physical and mental strength and more so, use them to her advantage. “I love the discipline, the strategy, and the ability to push past my limits. The intense training empowers me as an athlete and as a person.”
Jackman also competed in Trinidad, Barbados and India where she was exposed to the various conditions and experience the techniques of her opponents. “Fighting overseas has been an eye-opener. It exposes me to different boxing styles and allows me to measure my skills against top-tier athletes.”
She recalled one of her most challenging fights was at the Women’s World Championship in New Delhi, India, in 2023 against ‘Nupur Nupur’ of India. She admitted that it was a ‘tough fight’ and despite not winning, she walked away with a once in a lifetime experience.
“Every opponent brough a different challenge, but facing top international fighters has truly tested my abilities…I analyze my opponents’ styles and adjust my strategy accordingly. Boxing is about adaptability.”
“Yes, I do feel nervous right before stepping into the ring, but once the bell rings, all my training techniques kick in. I channel my energy into focus and execution,” she replied when asked out anxiety.
Boxing, she added is like an addiction – one which the player must always be fit both mentally and physically which meant she could not eat or do anything she pleases.
“My intense training includes proper nutrition, and mental conditioning. I visualize my fights, go through strategies with my coaches, and stay disciplined in my preparation. My training includes strength and conditioning, endurance workouts, and technical drills. My diet is balanced, with a focus on lean proteins, vegetables, and complex carbs to maintain energy and muscle recovery,” the woman with the power fist explained.
She added that during any fights, the focus is to remain unhurt and keep attacking the opponents- something that she has mastered over the years which resulted in her never been seriously injured during any of her competitions.
Jackman nevertheless, stated that training can sometimes be difficult because finding female sparring partners is scares especially those with of a high caliber. While the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA) has been supportive in promoting female boxers, sponsorship is lacking.
“One major challenge is finding female sparring partners at a high level. Sponsorship can also be difficult to secure. Female boxers have been supported fairly and equally by the GBA. However, the sport as a whole needs more female participation, which would help with issues like sparring partners.”
She, however, believes that to attract more females into the sport, there needs to be more outreach programs, mentorship opportunities and increase media coverage for female boxers.
“The media has a tendency to pay more attention to the male boxing tournament… over the years we have seen that a female boxing tournament would attract a few media houses when compared to the male tournaments which is swarm with media operatives…sometime, they even broadcast live… as female boxers, we need the very support from stakeholder whether the media, corporate Guyana and even sometime those in the boxing fraternity.”
Like any other athletes, Jackman faced obstacles during the early stages of her career but instead of giving up, she used them as a motivation to push harder and stay focused on her goals. “I channel my setbacks and challenges into my training and performance. Every setback fuels my determination to succeed.”
Winning the 80kg class at the recent tournament was a proud moment for her and more so, the team and ultimately, Guyana, but this is just a recipe to go full throttle ahead to fulfil her dreams of participating in International Boxing Association (AIBA) Championships and to represent Guyana at the Olympics.
“Pushing me closer to my goals are my sister, Alesha Jackman, my family, and my coach, Sebert Blake. Their belief in me and their constant encouragement keeps me going. That is all I can ask for.”
For those ladies who would want a career in boxing, the talented boxer urged them to be dedicated and with hard work and determination, success will come. “Never let anyone tell you that you can’t achieve your goals. Boxing is tough, but the rewards are worth it.”
This female Guyanese boxer is presently employed with the National Sports Commission (NSC). Her schedule is sometimes so hectic that she hardly gets the time for leisure activities although she likes dancing.
From work, she heads to the gym for training after which she attends classes and then, when she gets home, it is time to assist her younger sister with some school work. Her favorite food is pasta and likes anything purple. She also looked at ‘Bad Boys for Life,’ several times making it one of her favourite movies.