KUWAIT: The Asian juniors boxing tournament will begin tomorrow under the patronage of Kuwait Olympic Committee President Sheikh Fahd Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad and in the presence of Deputy Director General of the Public Authority for Sports Saqer Al-Mulla, head of Asian Boxing Federation Anas Al-Otaiba and heads of Asian boxing federations that are participating in the championship. The opening ceremony will witness a parade of participating countries, a show that will reflect the youth's happiness towards the lifting of Kuwait's international sports participation as well as folkloric dances.

Preliminary matches will also be held, leading to the finals on Aug 8, as boxers will compete for 14 gold medals. Chairman of Kuwait Boxing Federation Mohammad Mansi said everything is ready for the Asian championship, as efforts were made to ensure the success of this important event.

Mansi thanked Kuwait Olympic Committee and its President Sheikh Fahd, who followed preparations day by day and provided great support to the Kuwait Boxing Federation. He also followed the national boxing team and gave all what was required to ensure their best physical and technical readiness. Mansi also lauded the distinguished the role of PAS in removing all obstacles in order to ensure an organization that reflects the status of Kuwaiti youth in Asia. Mansi thanked Kuwait Sports Club board and its Chairman Khalid Al-Ghanem, who welcomed the hosting of the tournament at his club.

Meanwhile, Kuwait national team coach Hamid Zayed said the national boxing team has reached the best physical and technical preparedness, despite the short period they had compared to the rest of teams, especially teams from Kazakhstan, the best in the world, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, South Korea, China and India. "Time was not on our side to prepare boxers the way we wanted, but we reached a satisfactory level," Zayed said. "The Kuwaiti athlete is courageous and clever, and this is required in a boxer. We hope this continental tournament will be a launch pad for Kuwait boxing to make the best achievements regionally and at the continental level," he added.

By Abdellatif Sharaa