New Zealand names 5-member boxing team for CWG
A five-member boxing contingent will represent New Zealand in the upcoming Commonwealth Games to be held in Delhi from October 3-14.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) on Tuesday named young boxer Joseph Parker in the team, which will also have the likes of Commonwealth Championship bronze medallist and world number 21, Nathan McEwen (75 kg) and Angus Donaldson (60 kg) who won silver at the Oceania Championships among others.
According to a NZOC statement, the other two members of the Kiwi team are Reece Papuni (81 kg), who won bronze at the President’s Cup in Baku, and Commonwealth Championships bronze medal winner David Aloua (91 kg).
The 18-year-old Parker won silver in the Commonwealth Championships in Delhi earlier in 2010 and bronze at the Youth World Championships in Baku (Azerbaijan).
He will also represent New Zealand at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games to be held in Singapore from August 14-26.
Soon after his selection in the Delhi-bound squad, Parker, who will contest in the super-heavy weight category in the Commonwealth Games, said, “Now it’s my chance to show New Zealand what I’ve got.”
Boxing New Zealand chairman and former national coach John McKay said Parker is a medal prospect in the Commonwealth Games.
“He has very fast hands and is very mobile for a super-heavyweight. He’s comparatively inexperienced but with only 30 competition bouts under his belt he is achieving very well,” McKay said.
He also said that team contains two very experienced boxers in McEwen and Donaldson. “These boys have very good idea what is required of them in Delhi which is to be very fit and technically well equipped. Today boxing is very technical,” McKay said.
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