The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunmedia.net

LENNOX Boyce international debut was a tough lesson in developing his stamina as he ran out of steam as he had to fight his way off the ropes and he ended up suffering a split decision in his opening match of boxing at the sixth Commonwealth Youth Games.

As the lone boxer for the Bahamas and competing out of the light welterweight or 54 kilogram class, Boyce was on the defensive as the taller Galelemogwe Brain from Botswana took control of their three-round bout on day two of the boxing on Thursday at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium.

“Although I didn’t win, I think the fight was good,” Boyce said. “I fought a tough opponent and he showed that he was the better man today, but I’m prepared to just continue training and to get better.”

Brain, by far the more aggressive of the two, cut of the ring and put Boyce on the defensive throughout the match.

“The first and second round went pretty good for me. I got kind of winded in the third round and he took over and he was the winner here tonight,” Boyce said.

In the third, Boyce also got a standing eight count from the referee, but he managed to shak it off and got back into the flurry. Once again, he had to do it off the ropes.

“I wasn’t hurt at all,” he said. “Fighting a taller guy wasn’t that big a factor. I just have to step up my game in training so that I can be able to fight the full three rounds.”

On hand to view the fight was his mother, Edith Boyce, who wasn’t disappointed at all in her son’s performance.

“He did his best. I’m proud of him,” she stated. “He did well. He did well.”

Boyce, 25, was accompanied in the ring by national coach Valentino Knowles, former national coach Andre Seymour and his personal coach Ray Minus Jr.

“He showed that he have what it takes to fight,” Knowles lamented. “This was his first international games and it showed that his conditioning played a major role in the outcome of the fight. He has a lot of skills, but he has to improve on his conditioning.”

Minus Jr said the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan is the goal to get Boyce ready and they are right on target.

“We started five years ago at the age of 12 and he’s now 17, but he’s come a long way,” Minus Jr said. “This is his first big international competition and to perform in a tough match like this was a big plus and a confident booster.”

With the win, Brain will advance to the semifinal as the boxing competition start to wind down this weekend.