Boxing-Seychelles regain ‘king of Indian Ocean’ title |12 August 2011

Seychelles’ gold medallists in yesterday’s finals were Andrique Allisop (56kg), Kitson Julie (69kg), Jovette Jean (75kg) and Keddy Agnes (81kg).

First to step into the ring yesterday was 18-year-old Allisop whose opponent was 2008 Olympic Games bronze medallist Bruno Julie of Mauritius.

Young local pugilist Allisop, who lost to Julie at the Zone four Senior Championships in Gaborone, Botswana in May, was not intimidated by his opponent’s sideboard of silverware and started the bout on a good tempo.

After losing the first round 5-7, Allisop stepped up his game and became more precise in his offensive and defensive manoeuvers to win the second and third rounds 10-6 and 9-6 for an overall 24-19 score.

Seychelles’s second gold medal came courtesy of Kitson Julie against Mauritian Kennedy St Pierre.

After winning the first round 8-7, Julie, who was defending his title won in 2007 in Madagascar, was held to a 3-3 draw in the second. It was only in the third and last round that Julie took control of the bout to win it 8-4 and the fight 19-14.

Jovette Jean was the winner of Seychelles’ third gold medal after his win by Referee Stopped Contest (RSC) in the second round over Patrick Menagere of Madagascar in the 75kg final.

Jean, who lost the first round 4-8, forced the referee to stop the bout after the Malagasy received a third count of eight.

Keddy Agnes needed only 1 minute 30 seconds in the first round to win Seychelles’ fourth gold medal, also by RSC, against Raphael Jacques of Mauritius.

Other than the four gold medals, Seychelles won five bronze through Dave César, Macfarlène Estrale, Perry Nassib, Alva Botsoie and Ronny Legras.

A bitter Bruno Julie said the scoring was unfair as most his opponent’s punches in the second round – which Allisop won – ended in his gloves.

‘I don’t have anything against my opponent, as he is not responsible for whatever happened. Like me, he stepped into the ring to do his thing. My concerns are with the judges and their decisions,” added the Olympic bronze medallist.

Mauritius, Reunion and Reunion won two gold medals each.

What the gold medallists said:
Andrique Allisop (56kg): “The gold medal is my greatest achievement in life so far. At only 18 years old, I managed to beat an experienced boxer and Olympic Games’ medallist. Today I stood up to Team Seychelles’ motto ‘Nou Zil, Nou Zwe’ to keep the gold medal on home soil. I would like to thank my coaches, my family and all those who backed me up”.

Kitson Julie (69kg): “The bout was a tough one. It seems my opponents made their homework based on my performance at the last Games. I have been working hard as well and today’s performance pays for the sacrifices I have made. I would like to thank my coaches, family and all those who supported and believed in me. I would also like to thank my uncle and mentor Roland Raforme for his continued support”.

Jovette Jean (75kg): “I started the bout a bit slow, but I managed to pick up the slack in the second round to take full control. I knew that my opponent was a hard hitter just like me, so I prepared myself well to outplay him. I would like to thank my coaches, family and the medical team who healed my injury”.

Keddy Agnes (81kg): “It is my first IOIG and I’ve achieved my aim of a gold medal. I trained very hard and I am proud of my performance. My intention was to end the bout as early as possible and the game plan worked well”.

Views of the coaches:

Rival Payet: “Today’s performance is a great achievement for Seychelles’ boxing. Despite not getting the best of preparations, the boxers believed in themselves and there was always a good team spirit. They were all aware of their responsibilities and also what the whole nation was expecting of them. We have regained top spot in the region and for me this is a great achievement. With more support from the authoritities, our boxers can achieve better results”.

Gerry Legras: “First of all, I would like to congratulate all the boxers for bringing back the title. We were bonded as a team all throughout our preparation and during the Games. This helped us to better our performance and boost our team spirit. I would like to thank all those who backed us, especially Remy Zialor for his good advice. I hope our good performance will convince the authoritities to take a closer look at boxing, offering more opportunities to our young boxers”.

Results of the other finals:
49 kg: Lalaina Rabenarivo (Madagascar) beat Oliver Lavigillante (Mauritius) 16-5
-52 kg: Ludovic Bactora (Mauritius) beat Guillaume Mithridate (Reunion) 21-11
-60 kg: Eric Dagard (Reunion) beat John Colin (Maurice) 20-17
-64kg: Richarno Colin (Maurice) beat Jafata Tsimagniry (Madagascar) 29-7
-91 kg: Rodolphe Randriamanantena (Madagascar) beat Emmanuel Payet (Reunion) 18-17
+91kg: Brice Cadenet (Reunion) beat Mohamed Feno (Madagascar) 13-11

R. D.