Hit Squad light flyweight pugilist, Christine Ongare, has let out a sigh of relief after the world boxing governing body, AIBA, rejigged the female weight categories from 10 to 12.
Ongare, who locally plies trade for the Kenya Police boxing team, lauded the idea, pointing out she has finally landed a glorious opportunity to ply her trade and prove her mettle in her exact weight category — the light flyweight.
“Previously, I had been forced to feature in the classes that were far above my weight due to the absence of the light flyweight category. This made beating my opponents a big challenge considering they had more body mass,” said Ongare in an exclusive interview.
The new leadership of the International Boxing Association (AIBA) introduced extra weight classes as part of their wider ambitious reform plans.
The men's weight categories have been increased to 13 from the current 10, with the minimum weight reduced to 48kg from 49kg. The featherweight (57kg) has found its way back to the ring. So are the light middleweight (71kg) and the cruiserweight (86kg). The bantamweight has been scaled back to 54kg from the current 56kg.
The women's divisions will now have two extra categories with the addition of light flyweight at 50kg and light middleweight at 70kg.
Other than ensuring the boxers are safe, AIBA said the changes will provide equal opportunities in fighting.
“We have increased the number of weight categories because we want more men and women to be involved in boxing," said AIBA president Umar Kremlev at a press conference held on June 28.
With her wish now fulfilled, Ongare who formed the quartet that represented the country at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, says she is punching furiously on the bag to shore her stakes at the forthcoming AIBA World Boxing Championships slated for March in Turkey.
“At the moment, my objective is to perform well at the forthcoming President Jamal Cup in Kisumu and secure a national team call-up,” she said.
Ongare, however, prodded female boxers in the country to up their game if they hope to grace the international stage.
“During the national trials at Charter Hall, I realised that not all the female categories had participants. We need more people to come out and fill the positions. It appears our female boxers are still too timid to prove their mettle on the national stage,” said Ongare.
“We are implementing this crucial change now whilst widespread reform of AIBA’s whole competition structure is in process,” said Kremlev.
“I truly believe we must deliver more opportunities to our athletes; the new divisions will encourage more people from various countries to take up boxing, and allow more nations to win medals. The more medals we have, the more governments will pay attention to our sport and fund it around the globe,” he added.
