For the last three years, the local boxing governing body had struggled to organise serious competitions – particularly the national championships – due to lack of a professional ring. But, following the recent acquisition of a good standard ring from Dubai, boxing body president Vicky Kalisa is confident that things are likely to improve, or even completely change. Speaking to Times Sport on Sunday, Kalisa said, “One of the reasons boxing was stagnant was the lack of a ring. There will be no excuse now,” he said, adding that the new ring can be dismantled and reassembled, making it easy to be moved to different competition venues in the country. “Thanks to Rwanda National Olympic and Sports Committee and the Ministry for Sports for buying us the ring. Now we can focus on putting up youth programmes to nurture fresh talents and organising as many competitions as possible.” With the arrival of the Rwf14 million ring, coaches such as David Kitooke believe that the facility will allow trainees to better learn the sport’s rules, get accustomed to moving in a finite space, and to corner their opponents strategically during bouts. “The locally made metallic ring that was being used before was a big trouble during bouts. It could not hold out at the floor and would most of the times bring fights to unnecessary breaks.”
