Giving credit where it's due KAINO NGHITONGOWhile so many of us were starting to question what is to be done for our Namibian boxers to start winning outside the country again, Julius Indongo has just proven to the nation that all hope is not lost.
It has come as a surprise to the Russians I know but to a Namibian, one would say we knew what he is able to do.
After watching the fight of Jeremiah Nakathila and as one of the people that felt that was an unfair judgement as Nakathila deserved to win that bout, I was a little bit in fear of what would happen to Indongo.
The Blue Machine, as he calls himself, stepped into that ring as the underdog but was full of confidence, and within seconds he got the Russians biting off their fingers in anger at what had just happened.
Now what our very own son of the soil has done is what we call ruining a party, especially having your very first professional fight outside your country and that is what you deliver. It deserves more than just a round of applause.
What is exciting is not only the fact that he is now our world champion but the way and style in which he finished the Russian with that well-taken shot that his opponent could not recover from quickly enough.
Indongo has not only restored the hope in sport lovers that our boxers can still deliver away from hope but has shown to the world that Namibia continues to produce world-class boxers.
We often go by without recognising the hard work done by the promoters and the trainers especially.
What we have seen now is the work of a team that was determined and eager to prove the nation that losing one fight in Russia last month did not mean that we would continue losing the rest.
Like it has been said, hard work always pays off and what the Sunshine Academy has achieved is testimony to that.
Tyson Uushona
This is another boxer that deserves a pat on his shoulder for the kind of fight he managed to put up against his Polish opponent.
After hearing how he expressed his anger of being disappointed in the past and trying to relate to the pain he is feeling, what Uushona did on Saturday was really a redemption.
They often say one has to fail here and there before they pass and what Uushona has achieved to be crowned as the new IBF welterweight world title is testimony that he has indeed failed and has not got himself up and is now shining.
We can never shy away from the mistakes and blunders made by boxers here and there as well as their promoters but what should remain as the core value here is that whatever is done in boxing is for the upliftment of boxing.
Having bagged three world titles in one day is worth a big celebration and as we rejoice and praise the two world champs, let that be done in unity and in peace and let us always remember the power of sports.
We have a wealth of talented boxers in the country and we cannot afford to destroy or allow these passionate boxers to suffer because of infighting between promoters.
Boxing can only get where we really want it to be when we all work towards the same vision.
The boxing fraternity in this country has made strides all over the world and all that we can do is show the world that Namibian boxers are indeed born to be champions.
Dear boxers, I will take my cowboy hat off to you all, for enduring the hard punches at times, at times come to terms with the results ruled against you and mostly rejoicing for always putting up a great show.
Continue shining, and Namibians will continue praising you all for the great achievements.
Big ups to the two champions, Blue Machine and Tyson. I salute you!
kaino@namibiansun.com