Black South Africans found their messiah on the sporting front and ultimately justified their existence in a country where they suffered inhumane treatment under racial segregation when Welcome “Hawk” Ncita won the IBF junior featherweight world boxing title 33 years ago on this day.
His victory after dethroning France-based Spaniard Fabrice Benichou in Tel Aviv, Israel on March 10 1990 made a wholesome change in the minds of young black people, especially those in Mdantsane where Ncita comes from.
He became the first black local boxer to win the IBF belt and it came just as SA was coming out of the sporting boycott.
A sudden change of mindset saw a number of boxers from the Eastern Cape, Mdantsane and Duncan Village to be precise, taking their craft seriously.
Ncita’s success made black fighters realise that their background, no matter how bad it is, does not define one’s future.
One of the unsung men who made it possible for Ncita to get that opportunity Mthobi “Choirmaster” Tyamzashe, said.: “Sugar Ray Leonard once said people like Muhammad Ali created new holes to some and extended existing holes to others so that those who came after them must fit into that space. That is how important it was for a young black child when Welcome won the world title. It created a thought that they can do it.”
IBF president Bobby Lee Senior paved the way for that fight through his cordial relationship with Nelson Mandela and co-promoters Rodney Berman and Cedric Kushner. Berman and Kushner made sure that Tyamzashe attended the IBF Convention in New Orleans where he made a strong case on behalf of SA.
“Rodney told me that Welcome said to him that he did not want to go back to poverty,” said Tyamzashe. ‘Rodney said he did not have to say anything to motivate Welcome because clearly he knew what he wanted. If you watched how committed he was in that fight you will realise that he went there to take the title because it was going to be a life changer.”
Ncita, the lighting-fast sweet science practitioner, upset the bookies. He defended the title successfully six times before losing it to American Kennedy McKinney in 1992. Ncita lost a rematch to McKinney in 1994. Ncita retired in 1998 with 40 wins, three losses and a draw.
He was the first black local boxer to win the IBF belt
Ncita’s title win changed the mindset of young black fighters
Image: Daily Dispatch
Black South Africans found their messiah on the sporting front and ultimately justified their existence in a country where they suffered inhumane treatment under racial segregation when Welcome “Hawk” Ncita won the IBF junior featherweight world boxing title 33 years ago on this day.
His victory after dethroning France-based Spaniard Fabrice Benichou in Tel Aviv, Israel on March 10 1990 made a wholesome change in the minds of young black people, especially those in Mdantsane where Ncita comes from.
He became the first black local boxer to win the IBF belt and it came just as SA was coming out of the sporting boycott.
A sudden change of mindset saw a number of boxers from the Eastern Cape, Mdantsane and Duncan Village to be precise, taking their craft seriously.
Ncita’s success made black fighters realise that their background, no matter how bad it is, does not define one’s future.
One of the unsung men who made it possible for Ncita to get that opportunity Mthobi “Choirmaster” Tyamzashe, said.: “Sugar Ray Leonard once said people like Muhammad Ali created new holes to some and extended existing holes to others so that those who came after them must fit into that space. That is how important it was for a young black child when Welcome won the world title. It created a thought that they can do it.”
IBF president Bobby Lee Senior paved the way for that fight through his cordial relationship with Nelson Mandela and co-promoters Rodney Berman and Cedric Kushner. Berman and Kushner made sure that Tyamzashe attended the IBF Convention in New Orleans where he made a strong case on behalf of SA.
“Rodney told me that Welcome said to him that he did not want to go back to poverty,” said Tyamzashe. ‘Rodney said he did not have to say anything to motivate Welcome because clearly he knew what he wanted. If you watched how committed he was in that fight you will realise that he went there to take the title because it was going to be a life changer.”
Ncita, the lighting-fast sweet science practitioner, upset the bookies. He defended the title successfully six times before losing it to American Kennedy McKinney in 1992. Ncita lost a rematch to McKinney in 1994. Ncita retired in 1998 with 40 wins, three losses and a draw.
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