Boxing against gangsterism
'You know, the guys we train live in shacks. They don't have money.'
The Bekkersdal Boxing Club used to produce South Africa champions and now they are left without a boxing hall.
The boxing club run by Joseph Dlangamandla currently trains in between a few shacks in a section of a sand-pit of a yard.
“We used to have a boxing hall in Bekkersdal three years ago but due to service delivery protests, it was burned down and the municipality has not built anything since then and it doesn’t show they’ll ever build it,” he said.
Dlangamandla explained that because they can only train in the outdoor space, when it rains they have to cancel practice.
“I have a boxer here who is boxing the Gauteng Championship in a few days. He needs to train but how can he be ready if training is up and down?”
Since the burning of the boxing hall, Dlangamandla lost two South African champion boxers to gangsterism in the area.
“If they loiter, they get into trouble so we need to keep the kids of the streets but it’s difficult when you don’t have a venue,”
Victor Khota, a trainer at the club added,
This is Bekkersdal, you know how much gangsterism is in this area.”
Dlangamandla later approached the Westonaria Local Municipality to use the Simunye Sports Complex and was told that they need to pay for the club on a monthly basis for the upkeep of the facility.
They told him he has to pay R200 for registration every year and R80 per boxer if he wants to use the facility.
“You know, the guys we train live in shacks. They don’t have money. We want to take these kids of the streets but how can we do that if this is the current situation?”
The club also receives assistance from the Randgate Boxing Club headed by Willie Gonsalves.
Sometimes the Bekkersdal club trains on their premises. The club is now looking for a permanent solution to their venue problem keeping in mind that winter is coming up.
Should anyone be able to help the club with a venue they can contact Victor Khota on 072 371 9766 or Joseph Dlangamandla on 078 250 8286.
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