The enterprising duo of the 2022 Africa Boxing Championships silver medalist Elizabeth Andiego and Kenya Defence Forces welterweight champion Friza Anyango are in South Africa for the Inaugural Mandela Cup.
The Boxing Federation has stated that the two left the country on Wednesday ahead of the week-long competition, The Mandela Cup formerly the African Boxing Cup will be held at the Durban International Convention Centre in South Africa.
Andiego and Anyango comprise the competitive roster of 157 boxers from 39 countries eyeing a whopping Ksh 65 million prize purse pumped into the tournament by the International Boxing Federation (IBA).
The money will be shared by titlists across the 25 weight categories upon the completion of the vicious battle that will officially wrap up on April 21.
In an earlier communication, the Boxing Federation of Kenya had hinted at deploying 14 boxers to the showpiece that had earlier been scheduled to run from October 9-14 last year.
However, the federation only managed to secure two tickets for the annual event owing to a dearth of funds.
Andiego, whose last international appearance came in a 5-0 Round of 32 loss to Kazakhstan’s Bibossinov Saken at the Olympics 1st World Qualification Tournament in Busto Arsizio, has received a bye in the tournament draw conducted on Monday and is in the finals of the middleweight division where she will fight the winner of the semi between Geanne Dicks (South Africa) and Rady Gramane (Mozambique).
Anyango, who was the only boxer to win a bout in the aforementioned Olympic qualifying tournament, will on the other hand begin her journey in the quarter-finals, where she is set to face Cape Verde’s Gomes Moreira on Wednesday.
In the event of a win, she will face Uganda She Bombers captain Emily Nakalema.
The championships, named after Nelson Mandela, the first democratically elected President of South Africa, begin Wednesday, and will last one week marking a historic moment in the sport of boxing.
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