Marque amateur boxers Keevin Allicock and Colin Lewis lived up to expectations and qualified for the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games after some robust performances at the qualifiers being held in Tijuana, Mexico on Monday.
Allicock defeated Panama’s Leonel Gutierrez by unanimous decision while Lewis won via split decision against Carlos Tobar from Guatemala in the quarter-finals.The Commonwealth youth silver medallist will have his bantamweight semi-final bout on Thursday against Cuba’s Robeisy Ramírez who is a product of the highly renowned Cuban School of Boxing and a two-time Olympic gold medallist.
Lewis who is nicknamed ‘Superman’ will have his work cut out against Costa Rican Eduardo Sanchez in the junior welterweight semi-final this afternoon.
Though the opponents are of high quality, the duo’s one week training camp in Mexico City has proven to be ample preparation given the results to date.
More so, experienced national coach Sebert Blake, who watched both fighters intensely via the live stream told Guyana Times International Sport on Tuesday “they both looked solid but they are some areas they can improve”.
Blake who coaches Allicock at the Forgotten Youth Foundation gym in Albouystown, pointed out, “he [Keevin] got tired in the last round and lost some pace after going hard in the first two rounds. He needs to tighten his defence and stick to his best attribute which is being elusive”.
The coach noted the Cubans are “flat-footed and could easily change their style at will which means Allicock will have to be cautious.
Regarding ‘Superman’ who hails from Guyana Defence Force gym, Blake underscored the importance of him using his length to his advantage and increase his punch combo as many of the boxers in his weight group seem to be shadowing him.
“Instead of just landing the upper-cut he can look at a left hook and some jabs and then land the powerful upper-cut”.
The duo are under the guidance of Guyana Boxing Association Technical Director Terrence Poole. CAC Games will be held from July 19- August 3 in Colombia. Prior to those Games, both fighters are expected to attend the Commonwealth Games from April 4-15 in Australia. (Akeem Greene)
