Durban — KwaZulu-Natal boxer Phiwokuhle Mnguni returned to her hometown of Dundee on Tuesday to a warm welcome after clinching a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games.
She is the first South African woman boxer to reach the podium at the games. Mnguni said the goal now for her gym, Sibongile Boxing Family, was the 2024 Olympic Games.
“The vision now is the 2024 Olympic Games – we are now going to prepare to qualify,” she said.
Mnguni said what would improve her skills was getting her gym fitted with more equipment.
“Our gym does not have a lot of equipment, so if we can get assistance in that regard we would appreciate it greatly as it will enable us to improve.”
She said she had learned a lot from being in Birmingham, the UK for the games, and had also made friends.
“I achieved what I did through God, my ancestors, and all my coaches, including coach Nathi Hlatshwayo senior, and Nathi junior, and coach Monin; they helped a lot in getting me where I am today, and I am so grateful to them,” she said.
The mayor of Umzinyathi District, Petros Ngubane, said the district was proud of what Mnguni and her coaches had achieved.
“We are very happy with what they have achieved, coming back with medals. We understand that another one of their boxers from the Eastern Cape also got a medal. We hope their wins encourage and inspire others in boxing and other sporting codes, that you can be anything you want to be no matter where you come from,” Ngubane said.
A motorcade was scheduled for Tuesday in Dundee to give Mnguni a hero’s welcome back home.
“They must keep at it; we know that boxing is popular in KZN, especially in Ndumeni, Dundee, as seen with victories in the SA Local Government Association games, so we knew that Mnguni would not let us down. Congratulations to her, her family, and coaches on representing South Africa well.”
Describing her journey to the podium at the games, the featherweight said there had been 12 participants in her weight division.
“I boxed with Sri Lanka, and the fight was stopped by the ref in round three. I then moved to face my second opponent from Northern Ireland, who had a lot of experience and has stood twice on the podium at the Commonwealth Games, collecting silver medals. This opponent was ranked fifth in the Olympics.”
Daily News