From the Sidelines: Great sportsmen

NAMIBIAN professional boxers such as Ali Nuumbembe and Paulus Moses are the humblest and gentlest people you can find and yet they are lethal in the boxing ring.

The two boxers have similarities in they don’t say much outside the ring, but have the audacity to do the job in the ring. Moses, who currently holds two world boxing titles (WBA Pan-African and WBA Intercontinental) has a date with Japan’s Yusuke Kobori and I have no doubt in my mind that he will grab that world title from him.The two are meeting next month in Tokyo and the fight, which has been postponed several times, has now officially been confirmed according to Namibia’s leading boxing promoter and trainer, Nestor Tobias.Moses will have the chance to prove to all that he is indeed a world champion.The night of November 24 in Tokyo should be the ultimate for Moses, who has so far not let his thousands of fans down as he has a magnificent record of 23 fights without a loss.The young talented boxer is a man of few words outside the ring and does not talk big before fights.He does not brag of what he will do, but merely talks about his preparedness for the fight.Moses will go far in his career if he keeps his cool the way he does.From the outset, Moses, who grew up at Kapya in the Oshana Region, was destined for greatness as soon as he joined the academy that has been run solely by Tobias for more than a decade now.The man has discipline and works hard to achieve his goals and is a great ambassador for his country, while his natural friendliness makes him one of the favourite sportsmen among journalists.Many aspiring Namibian boxers who are dreaming of becoming world champions one day and his current mates in the same stable are looking up to him for inspiration.He is indeed destined for the best in his career still.Similarly, Nuumbembe has been one of the few boxers who have showed high regard for discipline and hard work.The amazing thing is that he has really come of age and his recent performances with no doubt make him a serious world title challenger.Nuumbembe goes for his first ever world title fight when he meets South Africa’s Mbongani Mwalesa, who is currently the International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight champion.Nuumbembe will pull this one off because he has shown a lot of aggression in the ring and is a well-composed fighter with a unbelievable hand speed.While in England for a few years, Nuumbembe was never given the opportunity to go for bigger things, apart from the Commonwealth title, but with Tobias as his new manager and trainer, the NDF Captain has clearly shown that he should have been a world champion a long time ago.Also, a lot of praise and respect should go to Tobias for single-handedly tying up fights for his many boxers in his stable.He does not only do it for his own good, but has opened the doors for many of these boxers who are now making a living out of the sport, while at the same time he has put Namibia’s name on the world boxing map.The lone manager, who runs a gym and fitness academy of at least 20 exceptionally good boxers, has made inroads in the African boxing domains and most of his boxers have come up against the best fighters on the continent.Most of them have been extremely successful and there will be no shame in naming them.Boxers such as Wilberforce ‘Black Mamba’ Shihepo, Betuel ‘The Unstoppable’ Uushona, Vikapita ‘Beat Master’ Meroro, Jatoorora ‘The Sting’ Tjingaveta and Sacky ‘Izi-Nyooka’ Shikukutu are all destined for greatness in their careers.This will not only be good for them, but for the image of Namibia as a force in boxing.Moses, who currently holds two world boxing titles (WBA Pan-African and WBA Intercontinental) has a date with Japan’s Yusuke Kobori and I have no doubt in my mind that he will grab that world title from him.The two are meeting next month in Tokyo and the fight, which has been postponed several times, has now officially been confirmed according to Namibia’s leading boxing promoter and trainer, Nestor Tobias.Moses will have the chance to prove to all that he is indeed a world champion.The night of November 24 in Tokyo should be the ultimate for Moses, who has so far not let his thousands of fans down as he has a magnificent record of 23 fights without a loss.The young talented boxer is a man of few words outside the ring and does not talk big before fights.He does not brag of what he will do, but merely talks about his preparedness for the fight.Moses will go far in his career if he keeps his cool the way he does.From the outset, Moses, who grew up at Kapya in the Oshana Region, was destined for greatness as soon as he joined the academy that has been run solely by Tobias for more than a decade now.The man has discipline and works hard to achieve his goals and is a great ambassador for his country, while his natural friendliness makes him one of the favourite sportsmen among journalists.Many aspiring Namibian boxers who are dreaming of becoming world champions one day and his current mates in the same stable are looking up to him for inspiration.He is indeed destined for the best in his career still.Similarly, Nuumbembe has been one of the few boxers who have showed high regard for discipline and hard work.The amazing thing is that he has really come of age and his recent performances with no doubt make him a serious world title challenger.Nuumbembe goes for his first ever world title fight when he meets South Africa’s Mbongani Mwalesa, who is currently the International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight champion.Nuumbembe will pull this one off because he has shown a lot of aggression in the ring and is a well-composed fighter with a unbelievable hand speed.While in England for a few years, Nuumbembe was never given the opportunity to go for bigger things, apart from the Commonwealth title, but with Tobias as his new manager and trainer, the NDF Captain has clearly shown that he should have been a world champion a long time ago.Also, a lot of praise and respect should go to Tobias for single-handedly tying up fights for his many boxers in his stable.He does not only do it for his own good, but has opened the doors for many of these boxers who are now making a living out of the sport, while at the same time he has put Namibia’s name on the world boxing map.The lone manager, who runs a gym and fitness academy of at least 20 exceptionally good boxers, has made inroads in the African boxing domains and most of his boxers have come up against the best fighters on the continent.Most of them have been extremely successful and there will be no shame in naming them.Boxers such as Wilberforce ‘Black Mamba’ Shihepo, Betuel ‘The Unstoppable’ Uushona, Vikapita ‘Beat Master’ Meroro, Jatoorora ‘The Sting’ Tjingaveta and Sacky ‘Izi-Nyooka’ Shikukutu are all destined for greatness in their careers.This will not only be good for them, but for the image of Namibia as a force in boxing.