Kenyan boxers plot for victory route in India

Featherweight Pauline Chege training at Mathare Police Depot, Nairobi, ahead of Women World Championship. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

After a long medal drought spanning decades, the National Technical Commission came up with a-six-point-plan that seeks to guide Kenya in to the medal bracket at the World Women Boxing Championships that begin tomorrow, in New Delhi, India.

Head coach Musa Benjamin outlined a raft of measures that the Kenyan boxers must follow in order to win medals.

He said his boxers have been taught advanced computer scoring system as the first step towards their ambitions.

"With emergence of technology, global boxers are well versed with computer scoring system and we have taken the same initiative and moved to inspire our boxers towards the same goal for us to reach the medal bracket," Benjamin told Standard Sports.

Kenya is among few African countries who have sent a full squad of 11 boxers to the showpiece.

He said his boxers must always throw accurate punches in all their bouts for them to score vital points.

"The team should adhere to the computer scoring system, which should see us advance to the medal bracket if appropriately adhered to," he said.

Benjamin is being assisted by coaches David Munuhe and John Waweru. The head coach urged his boxers to be competitive against their opponents in their bouts from the first minute.

"Being competitive against our opponents should be an advantage to our boxers. Our boxers should aim to knock out their opponents if one gets that chance," said Benjamin.

The tactician said he had taken the boxers through video lessons on some of the great global boxers they faced in their previous continental and global championships.

"Video lessons are the last sessions we took them through on some of their tough opponents they faced in the continent, " he said.

Kenya sent a squad of 11 boxers for the global championships.