shoes, skipping ropes and even mouth pieces. Nevertheless the boys did well and produced a couple of champions like Eric (Black Material) Ntsele, bantam weight champion of South Africa, Freddie (Tomahawk) Ngidi, Transvaal fly weight champ, and who was employed at the legal firm in which I was a partner and who lost on a narrow points decision to the national champ John Mthimkhulu; Jo Mokotedi, also Transvaal fly weight champ. Then there was Jerry himself who became a champ only after the split. The club was functioning well; the discipline was good and solidarity so strong that I abandoned the idea of bringing Jerry and Skipper together.
We developed a good relations with other boxing clubs and individual boxers. Fondi Mavuso from Sophiatown, then welter weight camp of South Africa and Oriel Xaba from Evaton and Transvaal light heavyweight champ, were amongst the boxers who came to our gymn for sparring when they were preparing for fights.
African boxers, like all black sportsmen and artists, have to overcome many handicaps, not the least of which are poverty and the colour bar which denies them the opportunity of belonging to white clubs where they could have access to all the equipment and expert advice necessary to produce a first class boxer. Almost all the money they earn goes mainly to buying food, paying rent and purchasing clothing and the average African boxer finds it difficult to invest in boxing equipment and literature.
Almost all African professional boxers have full time employment and only start their daily training
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