Bogere tips Ugandan boxers

KAMPALA. US-based boxer Sharif Bogere has been here for just two weeks but he made sure his first homecoming counts by being in only the right places, doing only the right things.
Bogere, popular by The Lion moniker, is no man for showbiz and when he hasn’t been with his family, he has been trotting from one media house to another for talk shows, and interviews.
But top on his agenda was meeting boxers and coaches “not to lecture them” rather share with them some of the tips that have kept him on course, despite trying times.
Two days after meeting the club coaches at the Fitness4Life gym in Lugogo, Bogere opened his meet with the boxers yesterday, stressing the need for good conduct.
“You lose nothing when you behave well, yet you put yourself in line for favours. Because the world loves well-behaved people.
“When I’m not in the ring or in the gym, it’s very hard to know that I’m a boxer.
“Fellow boxers, let boxing stop in the ring and in the gym, not on the streets. That way we shall change people’s perceptions that boxers are bad boys.”
From a technical point of view, Bogere, who has trained with some of the best boxers like former world champion Zab Judah, trainers like former world champion Mike McCallum, former US Olympic coach Kenny Adams, and currently the legendary Thell Torrence, his advice to boys, who have not fought beyond Uganda, cannot be overstated.
He warned them against excessive road work. “Moderate running is good, especially if it’s mixed with sprints. But excessive roadwork is dangerous. It tires the body and in the long run it causes injuries,” Bogere said.
The former national captain speaks from experience. Between 2008 and 2012 he had knitted an enviable 23-0 professional record before injuries intervened.
In 2013 he took a year’s break to treat his left Achilles tendon which partly affected his performance against Richar Abril in his first world title shot.
In 2016, he underwent surgery on his right Achilles tendon, which slowed his pursuit for world glory.
“We used to run over 10 miles every day but the doctors told me it partly contributed to my injuries, so brothers be careful.”
Bogere also advised the boxers to “invest some little more money to buy proper training boots.”
Coaches have a tendency of starving boxers who are making weight. Bogere recommended “as much water as possible because the body needs water at all times.
And if you don’t take water, the body might refuse to emit the fat you want to shed.”