Eastern Cape boxing promoter Mzi Booi from Kay B Promotions prefers to focus on development than occupying himself with the upheavals happening around the fistic sport.
Already, Booi, a new player in boxing promotions space, has promoted two well attended tournaments this year and a third show is in the pipeline. And following Minister of Sport Gayton McKenzie’s decision to dissolve the Boxing South Africa (BSA) board last week, Booi doesn’t want to get involved other than hoping for the best for the benefit of the sport.
“We never wanted to get involved in what is happening in the boardroom. Our hope is that boxing can grow and go back to where it was. We need to tell the good stories about boxing. We are solely focusing on developing and assisting in boxing,” Booi said.
Of utmost importance to Booi is the development side of boxing and making sure that he plays his part in that. And the gala dinner he recently held in East London bears testimony to the fact he wants to see boxing returning to its former glory.
“We just realised that the boxers are really in need. The actual boxers, as good as they are, they don’t have a sponsorship. They struggle to prepare. They come from disadvantaged areas. We then contacted a number of people who have been very supportive,” Booi said.
“We don’t have funds that are available. We’ve got a team of people that are creative, committed to boxing. We sat down and thought about how to assist.” – Monwabisi Jimlongo
