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Published 28 February 2021
Female boxer Bolanle Shogbamu, gold medalist at the 2019 African Games in Morocco, talks about her boxing story and the challenges of sportswomen in Nigeria, in this interview with KELVIN EKERETE
Why
did you decide to choose boxing ahead of other sports?
I loved boxing from a very tender age and despite venturing into other sports, I still found my way back to it. My love for the sport developed when I used to watch boxing movies. I saw several clips of Mohammed Ali and I loved the way he moved. I started boxing at the age of 17 and it’s been fun since then. My stepdad introduced me to a coach, Obanla, in Akure, Ondo State when he saw me watching boxing movies. He asked if I liked to box, I said, ‘yes.’ That’s how I got here.
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Kelvin Ekerete
Nigerian boxers have continued to mourn the death of Akeem Sadiku popularly known as ‘Dodo’, who passed away on Saturday at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, aged 37,
The PUNCH reports.
Sadiku died of complications arising from surgery on Friday. The late boxer has been buried according to Islamic rites.
The boxer, who turned professional in 2009, fought in the super welterweight category.
Sulaimon Ologbade described the pugilist’s death as a “rude shock to the entire Nigerian boxing fraternity.”
The boxer said, “I received the news after I finished sparring in Nottingham, and I lost control of myself. Even my manager saw my countenance and knew I wasn’t myself. It is a huge loss to me and the Nigerian boxing scene.”