WINDHOEK, April 26 — Five athletes will represent Namibian Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Federation at the International MMA Federation (IMMAF) 2022 Africa Championship to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa from April 28 to 30.
The IMMAF’s first closed tournament on the continent which participated by Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Tunisia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, will exclusively feature African talents.
Carlos De Sousa, Namibian coach, and owner of Sousa Studio said the fighters are in high spirits and ready for the task at hand in an interview with Xinhua on Monday.
“The fighters are healthy and ready for the championships. This championship means a lot for the development of the discipline in Namibia,” he said, adding that the team has been preparing hard during a 10-week training camp.
The all-male Namibian team will include Flyweight fighters Jason Beukes and Paulino Alan Vumpa; Veja Hinda (Featherweight); Eduardo Platt and Geraldo Bok (Lightweight); while the heavyweight division will be represented by Uys Landsberg.
“We can expect a lot from these young Namibians as this is their first time participating in such a tournament. The team hopes to deliver outstanding performances,” De Sousa said as the team will depart on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, in response to Xinhua, IMMAF President Kerrith Brown in a statement said, “It is exciting to be able to return to Africa and create opportunities again for MMA amateurs to compete on the IMMAF platform. Africa has a record of providing top-ranked talents for IMMAF and is a hotbed of potential.”
“The competition can be expected to jump up a notch with the addition of newcomer national teams, and everyone will be watching for the emergence of rising stars from Africa’s grassroots.” (Xinhua)
