Malawi Professional Boxing Control Board (MPBCB) President Lonzoe ‘Defector’ Zimba has disclosed the body will not bid to host World Boxing Council (WBC) convention.
The development came after delegates to WBC annual convention in Hamburg, Germany, last year, agreed to give a chance to an African country to host the event.
Zimba said they do not have sufficient funds to consider hosting the biggest boxing meeting.
“It requires a lot of millions. We should not be building castles in the air. Let us be realistic because we are talking about millions in US dollars and to convert them into Kwacha it would be billions. So we do not have plans to host the convention,” he said.
However, Zimba said it was still a blessing to have the event in Africa as Malawi can send a lot of ringside officials to undergo training.
deliberate efforts
“It is still a blessing because our members including ringside officials, managers and promoters can undergo special training to acquire advanced skills, knowledge and certificates. It would be a cost cutting measure to attend the convention in Africa unlike overseas,” he said.
Youth Boxing Promotions Managing Director Salim Chazama asked MPBCB to sensitize stakeholders about the importance of the WBC convention.
“I think a lot of professional boxers could be eager to attend the convention if they are invited. It is our hope that the board should sensitize stakeholders on why it is necessary to attend the convention. On the other hand the board should make deliberate efforts to send more ringside officials for advanced training,” Chazama said.
Currently, Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, Uganda and Zambia are some of the countries that have expressed willingness to host the event.
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