Boxing: Launching of The Champs Amateur Boxing Club (CABC)-Julie saves The Champs |31 May 2005
Julie’s heroics earned him the best boxer award proving that the Champs Amateur Boxing Club, known as Unknown before last Saturday, have what it takes to earn success in the future.
Club chairman Simon Lespoir told those present before the official launching that the Champs Amateur Boxing Club does not only want to produce champions in the ring, but also in life.
He vowed that “the Champs Amateur Boxing Club will work in close partnership with the SABF to help boxing regain its lost number one status in the Indian Ocean region.”
Also present for the occasion were Seychelles National Olympic Committee (Snoc) president Antonio Gopal, Seychelles Amateur Boxing Federation (SABF) chairman Hervé Anthony, boxing president emeritus Esmé Jumeau and long-time boxing follower Jack Causton.
Other than Lespoir, the other club members are Valerie Jumeau (secretary), Kenneth Nalletamby (treasurer), Mohan Chetty (team manager), Sheila Boniface (medical officer), Philip Brioche (disciplinary officer), Daniel Adeline (ordinary member), brothers Roland Raforme and Basil Boniface (coaches).
In the ring, Julie, the nephew of coaches Boniface and Raforme, caught SPDF’s Nelson Molle with some stinging punches in the light welterweight (64-kg) category fight, twice sending him to the canvas inside 25 seconds in the fourth round.
Julie, 21 and last year’s African Championship gold medalist who was eliminated in the first round of the Olympic Games’ boxing competition in Athens, Greece, in 2004, told Sports Nation after his bout that “I came in the ring and enjoyed myself.
It was a good fight.”
Molle, 21 and whose twin brother Jonasson is training in Tunisia together with Jovet Jean, was voted the best loser.
Saturday’s competition registered two retirements, while the other eight went the distance. Anse Etoile Club’s Paul Betsy forced coach Rival Payet to throw in the towel with 39 seconds left in the second round for an easy win over Michael Brioche in the 57-kg division.
The Champs’ coach Boniface came to Clive Marengo’s rescue with 1 minute 24 seconds gone in the second round of the four-round 69-kg bout. After SPDF’s Hendrick Estral, who was making a comeback after a three-year absence, had floored Marengo with a flurry of punches, Boniface threw in the towel to save his boxer from taking more punishment.
Marengo got off the ring with a bruised left eye.
Like Estral, Danny Labonté made a successful return to the sport after having stayed away for four years, scoring with upper cuts and straight blows for a convincing 3-0 win over Patrick Bonne of SPDF in the 69-kg category.
Southpaw Labonté, 29, said that he was “surprised with his form after just two weeks intensive training and I hope to lose weight to box in my favourite 64-kg division in the future.”
Best up-and-coming boxer Nigel Benoit, 18, led his fellow Anse Etoile Club pugilists in winning all their six bouts, making former Seychelles’ light welterweight champion Jerry Legras a proud coach.
Benoit won the 60-kg four-round two-minute bout on a 2-1 score against Macfarlene Estral of Satellite Club.
Their other wins were registered by Dave César against The Champs’ Jimmy Jumaye (3-0 in the 51-kg division), Marcus Meriton against Satellite Club’s Egbert Camille (3-0 in the 51-kg division), Paul Betsy against School of Boxing’s Michael Brioche (retirement with 1:41 gone in the second round of the 57-kg), Darell Charles against Satellite Club’s Richard Fred (3-0 in the 54-kg division) and Steve Boniface against The Champs’ Dave Aglaé (3-0 in the 54-kg division).
In the night’s last bout, Willy Mussard won 2-1 on points against The Champs’ Hansel Larue only after referee John Figaro had penalised both boxers for not throwing punches in the 75-kg category.
G. G.