The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

KEEPING with their mandate to increase the exposure of amateur boxing in the country, Champion Amateur Boxing Club (CABC) is in the process of fast tracking a pair of fighters as developmental prospects for the 2020 Olympics.

CABC head coach Ray Minus Jr said he looks for 15-year-old Don Rolle and Lennox Boyce, 14, to become two of the prominent names in amateur boxing in the very near future.

The club is working hard, we are very consistent and hosting events every other Saturday. The fighters are getting a whole lot better, but our main goal is the potential of Don Rolle and Lennox Boyce to be Olympians is very much on schedule. We decided as a club to recognise persons who have the potential, the desire and who will make the effort to be successful. We feel like these guys have the potential to be elite so we want to focus on them to go the extra mile,” he said. “We are really focusing and provide a level of skills and coaching that we feel has to be passed on because I feel they have all the tools to get this done and get to that ultimate level.”

Minus Jr said it gives hope to these youngsters in that they have boxers such as Tureano ‘Reno’ Johnson, Valentino Knowles and Carl Hield, all of whom came out of this same programme and have excelled on the international scene.

“We know that we can produce Olympic prospects because we have already done it,” said Minus Jr of Johnson, who competed in the 2008 Olympics. We feel like we can continue to keep these young men focused on the Olympics and give them the hope to achieve that goal of getting to the Olympics. Once they have the talent, we want to give them the opportunity.

“The purpose of weekly fights and constant training is to get the fighters accustomed to the heavy workload their counterparts in other regions are undergoing in more advanced national boxing programmes. The programme we have is geared toward the development of the sport and for the guys to be able to achieve success at that Olympic level. Our pace as a developmental programme is in search of the next great Bahamian boxers. They need the experience. We know that a person with about 20 fights would never beat a person with over 100-200 fights so we want to be able to match and surpass that ability,” Minus Jr said.

“We have seen their ability improve. We have seen the skills getting better. We see their muscle structure improving and we are prepared to make a huge statement in the next four to five years. We haven’t given up on the dream for 2016, but we feel like we are on pace for great success in 2020. What is important is we have the support of their parents which is very important.”

As for the remaining fighters in the club, the tournaments serve another purpose.

“What we are doing as a club is to strategise with the development programme, while the amateurs shift toward the international tournament style of boxing. If you go to a tournament for a week, you’re likely to have three to four fights in that week. You might have to fight back-to-back,” he said. “We feel if we can groom enough people and put them in tournament-style fights, they will excel when they have to fight in these types of tournaments. This is a valuable experience, and they need this development so they can know how to deal with that type of pressure and competition.”

Minus Jr thanked his diligent staff and loyal sponsors which have kept the club and the sport afloat, including The d’Albenas Agency, Ron’s Electric, Henry F Storr among others. “Although many people right now are not supporting and patronising the sport, we want to see the athletes develop and we feel like we are achieving something,” he said. “Although there are fewer boxing programmes hosting events we are happy that CABC is sticking with it.”