Second annual Patrick Forde Memorial punches off today

As the Guyana Amateur Boxing Association (GABA) prepares to host its second annual Patrick Forde Memorial this evening. President of the Association, Steve Ninvalle, and organiser Alford Mc Donald, have promised it will be an entertaining event.
The first bell will sound at 19:00h at the National Gymnasium, as local boxers are joined by their Caribbean counterparts from Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago for the second annual Patrick Forde Memorial card.
The event was initially supposed to feature a boxer from another Caribbean island but GABA President Ninvalle explained why this is no longer possible.
“I think you know that this year we would have planned to have four countries participating, that is down to three because of the fact that St Lucia had to pull out their boxer Arthur Langelier. He suffered a cut and had to withdraw,” Ninvalle disclosed.
Despite the hiccup, Desmond Amsterdam will now exchange punches with Trinidadian boxer, Aaron Prince. Meanwhile, Keevin Allicock will battle Anthony Joseph, who is also from the twin island republic.
Other Guyanese to be featured are Jamal Eastman and Abiola and Alicia Jackman. On the other hand, Trinidad’s contingent will comprise of Blessings Waldropt as a youth boxer, Nyrell Hosein will fight in the capacity of junior boxer and Aaron Prince and Justin Parris will be the elite boxers.
Alford Mc Donald, who has been involved in the Memorial card since its inception, told the media that he has been striving to bring out the best Guyana has to offer, giving them much needed exposure.
“We have some pretty good fighters here and we’re trying to get some exposure for them. Hopefully next year you might be able to see the Americans or the Puerto Ricans down here, but they couldn’t make it. So definitely next year, we’ll try to have them on board, but, for now we still have some good fights for you to see,” Mc Donald shared.
With tickets set at $1000 for stands and $2000 for ringside, the tournament promises to be a refreshing one and it is the opinion of Steve Ninvalle that patrons who do not show will be missing a lot of action.
“I think anyone who would have seen these two young men in action (Allicock and Amsterdam) would know that the future of Guyanese boxing is in good hands. And we wouldn’t go out the usual route of asking persons to support and not to miss this. If you miss this, it’s at your own peril, because you will miss a lot,” Ninvalle declared.
This year’s Patrick Forde Memorial will be graced by James Beckles, who is the highest ranked referee/judge in the region. In addition to this, the GABA has sought to add some more entertainment to the 15 fight card with a video memorial of Patrick Forde. Patrons will be able to witness footage of Forde’s fights during his time as a pugilist.