Story by: Samuel Ablordeppey-New York
1998 Gold Medallist in the Common wealth Games Ghanaian
International Boxer Raymond Narh says though the future of Ghana Boxing is
bright and that a lot more must be done to ensure its renaissance and lift high
the flag of Ghana.
He said, though some Ghanaian Boxers are doing well to redeem
the image of Boxing and lifting high the image of Ghana there is the need for
government
to help improve on the sports infrastructure in the country and also provide
the needed incentives and motivation to boxers. Speaking to Samuel Ablordeppey
on the sidelines of the Sixty Six United Nations general Assembly in New York
in the USA, Raymond Narh who turned thirty three recently indicated that Ghana
could win more laurels and uplift her image if government focuses attention on
the profession and gives it a boost. He
said age would not stop him from bringing home a World Boxing Champion (WBC)
title soon.
‘’Since I won a gold medal in the 1998 commonwealth games no
Ghanaian had done that but with the right stuff and education Ghana can win
more titles’’. Raymond said.
He bemoaned at the attention and priority given to football
to the disadvantage of the other sporting disciplines especially boxing and
called for a reverse gear to make boxing more attractive.
‘’Our Boxers need recognition and attention to turn the table
around and also use the sport to attract investment and build the economy, but
if the status quo is maintained then Ghana must forget about winning laurels’’
He said.
Raymond Narh appealed to government to put in place mechanism
that will honour boxing heroes in the country. He advised the sports
authorities to give boxing equal attention and motivation as it’s done to
football.
He noted that he is in America training very hard under the
circumstances to make himself and Ghana proud. He further added that though a
lot of Ghanaian boxers could not survive in the U.S, he believes the U.S of A provides
a solid platform to boxers who want to make a difference.
‘’The system in the U.S is hard thus a lot of Ghanaian boxers
who come to the U.S cannot operate and
later return home but if you want to make it big in boxing then the place to train
and shoot up is America, U.S.A provides a good platform thus the reason I will
say America is he boxing University. I do not want to mention names they know
themselves’’ Narh said.
He explained that he rose to number six in the world, but
after he fought in a continental title and lost he dropped to the number
nineteen but had climbed to the seventeenth position and hopes to continue
climbing till he wins a world title.
He cited Joshua Clottey, Joseph Agbeko and himself as Ghanaian
boxers who are trying hard to keep the image of Ghana on the international
scene aglow. ‘’Ghana is on course as far as Agbeko and Clottey and himself are
concerned, the future is bright and President Mills and his government must
help the boxing profession-it must not be allowed to die’’ Raymond Said.
Raymond Narh urged aspiring boxers to have faith in God and
pray for God’s guidance and direction and not use or believe in the existence
of Juju.
‘’I will bring the WBC title home and be a world champion
before I retire, age will not be a barrier’’. Agbeko said convincingly.
