Sparks Academy to fight for fees, ring

Sparks Boxing Academy has lined up 15 bouts of boxing and bits of entertainment this Saturday as part of its charity series to raise school fees for the academy’s destitute members and buying a boxing ring.

In the main bout, UPDF’s hard-hitting Innocent Amoko will take on Sparks’ Douglas Kalungi in the 63.5kg category. The two have a point to prove in their third meeting, Amoko having won the first two.

“The main goals of the event are raising school fees for those boxers who are not on scholarship and buying equipment for the club,” said Sparks founder and head coach Herbert Kalungi.

Besides nurturing boxers for national competitions, the academy—home to over 100 boxers—pays school fees, rent and other basic needs for some of its members, most of whom are orphans and ghetto youths, in its “boxing for transformation” campaign.

It is surely a huge burden to shoulder for an outfit founded by Kalungi, a boxer who was in his early 20s and is still below 30. It is why Kalungi, who is also a fitness trainer and an aerobics coach, targets about Shs20m from mainly partnerships and gate collection at the event.

Initially, the event was scheduled to happen at Country Gardens Kitintale, but has been switched to Warehouse Lounge nearby.

Ringonomics

Kalungi is setting himself an even bigger target. “But our main aim this year is to raise money so we can buy a boxing ring for the club,” Kalungi told Daily Monitor.

He is not looking at the $16000 (nearly Shs60m) the academy needs for the ring. He rather sees how much the club will save in what would have been expenditure on the ring and how much revenue it will collect by hiring the gym to other clubs.

Hiring a boxing ring from the Uganda Boxing Federation costs at least Shs1m per day, which is expensive for any boxing club in Uganda.

“If we succeed we shall be the first boxing club to buy a boxing ring, and we gave ourselves a target of eight months from July 2023, to hit these targets,” Kalungi said.

MAIN BOUT

Innocent Amoko vs Douglas Kalungi

SELECT UNDERCARDS

Muhammend Ali vs Arafat Sseguya

Henry Oteba vs Derick Kazibwe

Bob Ruryatemba vs Mailes Mwesige

Benjamin Mukisa vs Nelly Mudenya

Aaron Yiga vs Joel Mudenya