Documentary on plight of Kenyan boxers launched
A moving documentary capturing the plight of Kenyan boxers and the perpetual poverty stricken lives they lead has been launched.
Titled The Last Fight and running under the theme: “For us boxing is a life”, the thought provoking 90 minute documentary features Dallas Boys Boxing Club which alongside the Kaloleni Social Hall – are the spiritual homes to the county’s boxing. Also featured is the Nakuru Amateur Boxing Club.
Shot on location in different settings, from the eye sore that is Muthurwa to the quiet neighbourhoods of Nakuru, producer and veteran sports writer Roy Gachuhi, captures in word and motion the struggles the pugilists go through in their daily lives in an effort to eke out a living and make a name.
The documentary is directed by Jackie Lebo and Jam Bishop, who alongside Gachuhi works at the Content House.
Gachuhi captures the boxers in their private space, in the dingy lit rooms they call home as they tell the bitter tales of their lives.
BREAKTHROUGH
What keeps them going is the the hope that one day, they will make the much sought after breakthrough and walk the same path walked by boxing legend Robert Wangila – the Kenyan welterweight gold medalist at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games.
However, their chief hindrance is a government that is bereft of ideas on how to develop sports largely aided by lack of interest.
The documentary also highlights the plight of the Dallas Boxing Club which has over time been abandoned and is struggling for survival in the wake of private developers to grab the land on which it sits.
“I have covered boxing for a long time. I was there when the game was at its peak – when Kenyan was at its best. It’s also unfortunate that I am now witnessing the sport on its death bed – I had to go out and see how these boxers live,” Gachuhi told Nairobi News.
“It has taken two years to film the documentary and its heart wrenching to see them live such lives. I hope watching the film will raise attention to the plight of our boxers and youth; that the responsible authorities at the Sports Ministry, which in my opinion has been a letdown, will act,” he added.