Nangolo eyes pro status

Youthful boxer Flame Nangolo's camp is looking to turn him into a professional this year.Walking into the gym, one immediately notices a sweaty figure pounding on a bag in the corner surrounded by much older boxers. Every punch he lands seems like it could dismantle the bag at any moment. Everything about the boxer screams hard work, power and a hunger for perfection.This is expected, because from a young age he was taught to do everything right the first time by his uncle and top local boxing trainer Immanuel 'AC' Moses, who also owns the AC Boxing and Fitness Gym now located in Katutura.Moses said he taught the young boxer how to throw jabs at the age of eight in his kitchen, and when he eventually took him to the gym, he was way more advanced than those who had been trying to box for about three years.“He catches on fast. So now I want to turn him into a professional. We need to avoid turning boxers professional at a much older age like 25. Also, the focus is to make him a world champion when he is 20 years old,” said Moses optimistically. Moses mentioned examples of boxers who jumped into big bouts at an early age. “If you look at American boxers like Shakur Stevenson, Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia, they all turned professional when they were 15 to 17 years of age. But for all of this to happen, I want him (Nangolo) to learn everything that he can so that I can send him to the Youth Olympics, but we are not happy with the way our amateur competitions are structured. So we have to just do things on our own,” said Moses who is inspired by legendary American trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr, who he meets regularly when he travels to the US. Helping handAs the dream unfolds slowly but surely, the 18-year-old Nangolo continues to hone his skills under the watchful eye of Moses and the rest of the more accomplished boxers at the stable.Pugilists like Paulus 'El Jesus' Ambunda, the current IBO bantamweight champion, as well as Paulus 'Hitman' Moses, who is a former WBA lightweight title holder, Sakaria 'Desert Storm' Lukas, the WBO Africa featherweight champion, amateur boxer Jacob Jacob and former world champion Paulus 'Blue Machine' Indongo, are all available to share their expertise.Most of them had good things to say about the boxer. “He should remain humble and work hard,” said Ambunda. “I respect the senior boxers. They have been around and have done and accomplished a lot. The give me tips and I watch when they train and fight. It's my dream to become a world champion, so I have to remain disciplined and respect the sport,” Nangolo said.The grade 12 people at Concordia High School in Windhoek said most of his schoolmates are not aware that he is a boxer. “Most of the time I focus on school, and thereafter I head to training; it's all I do.”Nangolo, who is a national champion in the junior lightweight division, said he also loves fashion and would like to model men's clothing if the opportunity arises.The boxing stable wants to participate in tournaments like the Ringside Amateur Tournament this year, where Nangolo can showcase his skills.The AC Boxing and Fitness Academy has close to 40 talented junior and senior amateur boxers. Boxing classes for juniors take place every week. Moses plans to set up a study area where juniors, both girls and boys, can do their homework after training.LIMBA MUPETAMI

Nangolo eyes pro status

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-09-15

Please login to leave a comment

Nangolo eyes pro status

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-09-15

Please login to leave a comment

Login