Rwanda Amateur Boxing Association (Raba) needs Frw3 million in their preparations for this year’s national boxing championship due for November 8-11 in Kigali.The Association’s General Secretary, Eugene Ndashikirwa told Times Sport recently that the federation is soliciting the funds to enable it host a successfully national championship.“We hope to raise that amount from different sponsors but at the moment we’re yet to get anything, nonetheless, we are confident about the chances of getting it in time for the event,” Ndashyikirwa said.He added that the money would cover prizes, meet essential necessities to make the event a success as well as the covering the boxers’ insurances.Ndashyikirwa further noted that the national championship will help in selecting the Rwandan team that will take part in the African qualifiers for the 2008 Olympic Beijing Games.Meanwhile, Rwanda’s boxing national team has been invited to take part in Tanzania’s Independence Day tournament.The team has already has started training in preparation for the event which is scheduled for December 5-9 in Dar es Salaam.According toRaba Secretary General said, “We intend to send a team for this tournament as part of the preparation for the Beijing Olympics Games qualifiers.”Eugene Ndashyikirwa added that since it would be the first competition (outside of the country) for the Rwandan boxers to participate in this year, a of effort is needed to put them in the right frame ahead of the tournament.The team that would travel for the event will be named after the national championship slated for November 8-11.In a related development, Uganda has applied to host Africa’s boxing qualifiers for the Beijing 2008 Olympics.Uganda Amateur Boxing Federation (UABF) submitted its application to the world amateur boxing governing body in September and they are expecting a reply soon. The All Africa Games in Algeria in July this year was meant to act as the continent’s first qualifier but the World body scrapped it off, opting to have separate qualifiers early next year. Rwanda is expected to fight for Olympic qualification spots in the African qualifiers with hosts to be named before the end of this year after missing out on-going World boxing championships due in Chicago, USA due to financial constraints.Ends
