NAIROBI, April 18 (Xinhua) -- A top global boxing official on Wednesday said the decline of boxing standards in Kenya is cause for worry.
Houcine Houichi, the Vice-President of the World Boxing Council (WBC), told journalist in Nairobi that boxing has taken a nose-dive in the East African nation to an extent that Kenya no longer feature on the international boxing map.
"Boxing is completely destroyed in Kenya, a country that at one time had good boxers, but nowadays even before they leave the airport for international bouts they already know they are going to lose," the Tunisian national said.
Houichi, who is also the President of the Africa Boxing Union (ABU), was in Nairobi to launch a training and accreditation seminar for Africa's ringside officials.
"I encourage more boxers to take part in ABU title bouts because they give one the opportunity to be rated with the top 40 boxers in the WBC," he recommended.
Two Italian technical experts, Massimo Barroveccio and Guido Cavalleri, will conduct the training that commences Thursday, which upon conclusion will see the trainees awarded accolades in four levels according to marks scored.
However, the country's decline in boxing sport started in the 1980's after several state corporations that sponsored clubs folded owing to structural adjustments programs leaving only three clubs from the disciplined forces in existence.
Prior to that, the fearsome boxing team competed with the best and won titles at major international competitions, but mismanagement took over that saw the standards of the game plummet to low depths.
