James Bakama

I SAY SO

PUGILISTS Sharif Bogere and Phillip Adyak’s decision to go AWOL in the United States has tainted Uganda’s outing to one of boxing’s top competitions.

I was shocked by the news, unlike my colleague James Lwanga, who prophetically predicted that UABF officials Dr. John Baptist Ntege and Kent Musa would be lucky if they returned with a full team.

They call it the American Dream. The United States is perceived as paradise by millions in the Third World.

Early this year, a big chunk of Cuba’s gold medal-winning Olympic team defected to the US.

You’ve also certainly not forgotten the 1997 disappearing act of UPDF boxers Kassim “The Dream” Ouma, Juma Ayiro and James Lubwama.
So, imagine what was going on in corporal Adyak’s mind the moment he landed at Chicago’s O’Hare airport.

The Bogere bit is what made it all surprising. While Adyak is past his prime, Bogere is at his amateur best.

The Kololo High School student was not only team captain, but also one of Africa’s most talented fighters.

It was therefore foolhardy of him not to compete given his chances of making it to the medal bracket, thereby qualifying for the Beijing Olympics next year.

A good show in Beijing would have thereafter made Bogere a hot cake on the prize fighting market.
Even if Bogere were to flop in Beijing, he would have already marketed his skills to top managers and promoters in Chicago.

If boxers like Godfrey Nyakana and Justin Juuko could land lucrative deals after impressing on a smaller platform like the Commonwealth Games, what about a good World Championship show?

But the path Bogere has chosen puts him at the mercy of sharks that are out to exploit desperate alien talents to the marrow.
I wish him luck.