This is the sixth in a series of articles that we have dedicated to boxing in Fiji — it is hoped that this will conclude the series.
So far, we have shared with you: how the BCF Board took over in September 2019; what the credentials of the chair and other board members were; the challenges of managing change; navigating through financial shortcomings; key challenges faced at critical junctures; setting up enabling rules to guide decision making at the operational level; dealing with the legacy of the “Alphabet Boys” in boxing; upgrading and fine-tuning the performance of referees and judges; dealing with recalcitrant promoters and boxers; fine-tuning weighins and programs; managing the corners during programs; overseas clearance; disciplinary procedures; and program vetting.
Each of these is a key cog in lifting the standard of boxing in Fiji. In this article, I wish to focus on each of these briefly and round it off with focused pointers.
Challenges of managing change
Whenever a new administration takes over an organisation, the immediate task involves grappling with managing change. Different managers/administrators adopt different approaches to managing change.
When we took over in 2019, our task was two-pronged: one, remove controversy from Fiji boxing; and two, revive boxing and bring it back to its glory days. We had to be very careful at the outset because there were a vociferous minority who were not convinced that we could handle the task.
The previous chair contacted me and confided about the type of people and issues we would have to deal with.
“Don’t run away too early Tovata,” he said. To his credit, he kept advising me throughout our tenure and I wish to thank him for his invaluable assistance. In addition to that, we had a dedicated cadre of referees and judges who came on board to help without any conditions.
Right there we had people who had been involved directly while we had been mere spectators.
Of course, I made my contributions through opinion columns, but I found out later that much of what needed to be changed, remained the same because of powerful forces who resisted change at every turn.
Anyway, it goes without saying that in order to make improvements one has to find fault with the existing set-up. Our diagnosis began the very day we took over.
The very first thing we agreed on was to have monthly rather than quarterly board meetings. This allowed us to pool our minds and make collective decisions while strengthening the governance systems in place.
To this day, our detractors do not believe that all the decisions, all the changes were agreed to at board meetings or through Viber before being implemented by the chair. This made me extremely unpopular with those who disagreed with our changes. Rules were enacted to plug gaps in the BCF Act 2015 and the BCF Operations Manual.
These then had to be applied uniformly and the task fell on me as chair. It is well known that whoever applies the rules becomes hated and demonised over time — this happened to me. Boxing, however, was the winner as processes gradually became standardised.
Promoters knew what to ask for, what to expect and how to proceed with organising their programs. Boxers knew how to ask for overseas releases, how to push for fights and raise issues of concern. BCF would respond to each one of these in the shortest time possible.
A Facebook page was created to further enhance the dissemination of information. Stakeholder meetings could not be organised with catering because of financial constraints.
That is one avenue that was not utilised to its full potential. There were, however, a few stakeholders who were not satisfied with the services provided by BCF. We look at this next.
Recalcitrant promoters and boxers
Promoters were used to having their way prior to our arrival. We identified many shortcomings with their programs that needed to be minimised or removed. Programs had too many fights, too many breaks and too much time gaps between bouts.
They also started after 6pm. This tended to prolong programs to beyond midnight. Many fans were complaining that this disrupted their plans for the evening especially if they travelled from afar.
We capped the number of professional fights at eight, gaps between bouts at four minutes and breaks to two of 10 minutes. This did not go well with one promoter who engaged a Nadi lawyer to threaten BCF.
There were also issues with sub-quality sound systems and lack of a professional ring announcer that denied our programs the professional touch. We worked on this amidst tremendous resistance and bad-mouthing from keyboard busybodies.
Social media really makes it hard to bring about change because anonymous detractors go to great lengths to hurl extreme insults and fanciful allegations at you. I am told some of these trolls work in tandem with the aim to disrupt Fiji boxing so that change is made to the board no matter where it leads the sport.
A number of boxers were also opposed to changes being implemented. There were those who felt that they were bigger than Fiji boxing (just like the one promoter discussed above). We explained and enforced rules whenever it was warranted. Five prominent boxers were suspended.
Subsequent, candid discussions with each one of them and their teams, led to hugely positive results. These enlightening and fruitful discussions with both promoters, boxers and their teams also led to great improvements in the manner in which weigh-ins have been carried out and programs managed.
We do not have people crowding the stage during weighins. This used to create great confusion and allowed boxers to cheat on weights. Only designated people are allowed on the stage now. Weights are called out professionally for transparency and the ring supervisor is the sole person in charge.
The whole weigh-in used to involve an uncontrolled melee before. The actual fight programs are also now rule-bound and controlled. Our stewards ensure that the next set of boxers are ready before the current fight is over.
Boxers enter the ring fully gloved to smooth the process further. We do not allow more than three people in the corners. Only one of these corner men actually enters the ring with the boxer. All this is in contrast to the entourage that boxers used to bring to the ring not too long ago.
The entourages had females and children among males. Fights and skirmishes broke out beside the ring because of the presence of these unauthorised supporters. All this is not allowed any more. It is unfortunate that much of what we have tried to remove reappeared at the recent program in Nadi.
This happened because our authority was greatly undermined by a promoter announcing relentlessly in person and on social media that our tenure was over and the BCF board was now “history”.
This was a highly unfortunate development because it appeared to show that the promoter had received some sort of powerful official assurance of this. We leave this here as the jury is still out for now. Let us look at two further points on boxing here.
The “Alphabet Boys”
It is no secret that boxing now has too many sanctioning bodies and “world” titles. There was a time when world boxing was ruled by World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC) and International Boxing Federation (IBF).
They were then joined by the World Boxing Organization (WBO) and later International Boxing Organisation (IBO). At this point there are too many to name. What we need to beware of is the reputation of these organisations and the long-term impact they may have on both the BCF and Fiji Boxing.
We have been very vigilant on this front and that has provoked negativity from those who want to establish international networks with shady/shoddy boxing bodies. In fact, we have been accused with having no boxing knowledge.
On this front our record speaks for itself and we have established a respected international profile with a healthy international network. Moves are already afoot to host an IBO title fight in Fiji later this year.
This brings us to the final point on lifting up the standard of boxing in Fiji and taking us back to our glory days.
Heyday of Fiji Boxing
Followers of boxing will agree that in the 1960s, the heavyweights ruled boxing in Fiji, the South Pacific and the world. There was healthy rivalry among our boxers within Fiji and within the South Pacific.
Occasional excursions were made to further shores with Leweni Waqa (Sawaieke, Gau) taking on Jimmy Ellis in London in 1966. Ellis won and went on to take on Joe Frazier for the World Title (WBA, WBC) in 1970.
These were belts that had been taken off Mohammed Ali when he refused to join the ill-fated US campaign in Vietnam. In 1968, Leweni Waqa defeated rampaging American Bob Stininato on points.
Tongans Mani Vaka, Fonomanu Sekona, Luke Veikoso and Samoan Fossie Schmidt had a healthy rivalry with Fiji heavyweights like Sunia Cama (Suva), Filimone Naliva (Ba), Jeke Naqelevuki (Lautoka) and Marika Naivalu (Vunidawa).
Later, interest moved to the lower divisions in a reflection of what was happening on the world stage. Michael Spinks (lightheavyweight), Marvin Hagler (middleweight) and Leonard/Hearns/Duran (welterweight) had set the world stage alive. Sakaraia Ve did the same here.
He cleaned out local competition before challenging for the Commonwealth Welterweight title thrice. During his run, he upset world-ranked Dominican Pablo Baez in Suva on points. Baez went on to fight Thomas Hearns.
Closely following in Ve’s footsteps was his gym-mate Wili Tarika who took on worldranked PNG boxer Johnny Aba at Albert Park in 1979. Alipate Korovou achieved what appeared impossible when he wrested the Commonwealth Middleweight Belt from Monty Betham in Suva.
He went on to take on world-ranked Ugandan, Ayub Kalule in Denmark. The rest is a history that we all want to see repeated.
Some of the pugilists listed above fought in Taveuni and even Rabi. This is what we need to do in Fiji now: increase the crop of boxers in each division and move programs around the country.
This, however, will need an adherence to rules, a tight administration of the same and predictability in decision making at the board level.
For this to happen, we need a board that will be firm in administering the rules and standing up to undue influences on boxing decisions from powerful toxic stakeholders. At this point in time, we have eight programs lined up from June to December.
The interest in boxing is back and we are very much at the proverbial “take-off stage”.
If we slacken the reins, we will go back to where we started from more than three years ago. With this, I conclude this series on managing boxing in Fiji.
• DR SUBHASH APPANNA is a USP academic who has been writing on issues of historical and national significance. He is also the Chair of Boxing Commission of Fiji. The views expressed here are his alone and not necessarily shared by this newspaper or his employers subhash.appana@usp.ac.fj
