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OLYMPIC BOXING QUEST
August 2004 |
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| An athletes journey in any sport is hard yacker and it doesn't get any easier even when the skills and experience have been honed over long years of practise and competition. The Olympic Games is the pinnacle for amateur boxers and this road leads to the Athens Games. Boxing was possibly the most demanding sport at the first Games of the 21st Century due to the fact that old style general amateur boxing rules still allow contestants not just to win by skilfully scoring more points, but by also knocking their opponents unconscious. | ||||||||||
| In close to 200 countries around the world young men lured like bees to a honey pot on the basis of representing their country boxed in State, National, and finally Regional elimination tournaments to see if they could live the dream of just being there. So lets join a young boxer on the road to being there at Athens and when, not if, he stumbles we will continue with his conqueror until he also proverbially hits the deck, and the last survivor in the chain achieves the ultimate prize an Olympic Gold Medal. | ||||||||||
| Australian Academy of Boxing, Gold Cup Rating 9 achiever, Dane Herbert boxing in the 75kg Middleweight Division is the boxer that we will walk a mile with until he stumbles. Whilst it may seem that we started off with a pessimistic outlook we were simply being realistic because no matter how good an athlete we are, or how skilful we can be, at some stage everyone can and does lose. | ||||||||||
A Journey Of A Thousand Miles Starts With The First Step The Long March (Mao Tse-tung) |
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| A Need for Personal Defence The first step towards Athens for Dane Herbert began at eight years of age way back in 1980 when his Mum Joy asked her husband boxing trainer Dereck Herbert to take him along to his gym the Collingwood Boxing Club, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, so that Dane who was very small could learn how to defend himself. His Dad showed him a correct defensive stance and how to throw punches with effect but purposely let him just have fun with other kids skipping, hitting the floor to ceiling balls and punch bags. Over the years Dane went to the gym occasionally just to have a bit of fun until at almost 18 years of age he said Dad I want to box. They were the operative words 'I want to box'. His Dad then started to teach him and in Dane's first year of competition 1990 won Victorian Novice & Intermediate Titles and was Runner-Up in the Open Light-Welterweight Championship. In 1991 he represented Victoria at Welterweight in the Australian National Championships losing to the eventual Gold Medallist. In 1993 he won the Lionel Rose Best Boxer Trophy and was Runner-Up in the Victorian Light-Middleweight Final. In 1994 he again reached the final and in 1995 was awarded the Arch Tanner Trophy, and won the Light- Middleweight Championship but with the Medallion round his kneck and crowd still cheering farcially had the decision changed. West Ham Other controversial decisions in the 1996 & 1998 Victorian finals saw Dane then travel to England to box for his Dad's old club West Ham to pick up a best boxer award but dip out in the 1999 ABA Championships
It's hard to keep away from boxing no matter how hard a game it is so in 2003 happily married to his darling Colleen down on a farm in South Gippsland, Victoria, with baby sons Alfie trotting at his heels and Sullivan in his pram Dane started his long journey back. Why you may ask does anyone try so hard when it would be so much easier to just sit back and enjoy life, and the reason is to be the best you can whilst you still can, or as Marlon Brando put it in: On The Waterfront 'I could have been a contender'. Dane's first bouts in 2003 after a four year layoff were in Australian Academy of Boxing Golden Gloves & White Collar Boxing competition that utilise rules that allow participants to hone their boxing skills without getting knocked out. In October-November 2003 he had a couple of general amateur warm up contests in the middleweight division and then his coach Craig Beeby entered him in the old knock-out style Victorian Championships starting on the 22nd February 2004. Always expect the unexpected. In December Dane picked up a viral infection which the doctors could not pinpoint and then went down hard with pneumonia. He was rushed to hospital on Boxing Day the 26th and was in there until the first week in January 2004 before they let him out to fully recuperate. But he still wanted to box and had his eyes set firmly on the Victorian Championships. |
A Boxing Trainers job is to train and provide experienced advice. The advice in this case was that it was nigh impossible in just 6 weeks for anyone so ill and weakened wth pneumonia to get from a hospital bed and into a type of boxing that allows contestants to be knocked senseless. But when the boxer still says he wants to give it a go then a trainer has to do his best to get the boxer to the church on time. So on a wing and a prayer Dane began training very lightly in the second and third weeks of January and on the 15th of February boxed in an Australian Academy of Boxing Golden Gloves Rules contest over the classic 3 x 3 minute rounds distance. His opponent Daniel Smith was also in the old style Victorian Boxing Championships so his clear points victory was a positive indicator of his gradual recovery. Champ On the 22nd February Dane met and stopped Clinton Johnson in round 2 of the Middleweight Championships and on the 7th March despite his opponent Nathan Woodham being allowed to continuously hold and head butt won over the 4 x 2 minute rounds by a wide 52 to 26 points margin. On the 14th of March Dane beat Luke Maloney by another wide points margin of 38 to15 and finally despite all the adversity had won the Victorian Championship. When Dane first walked into the Collingwood Boxing Club in 1980 as an 8 year old his coach Craig 'Super' Beeby was the Light-Welerweight Champion of Victoria and it was a great feeling for them to share the moment because once your Champion no matter what else happens in life no one can ever take it away.
As the saying goes if at first you don't succeed try try and try again. Dane had boxed for the old style Open Victorian Amateur Boxing Championship on six previous occasions and whilst winning the previous three times without getting the decision finally on the seventh try came up trumps and amazingly got to keep the medallion. A Contender A friend of Dane asked him if he could get to the Olympics and Dane replied 'hypothetically while he kept winning he had a chance, but realistically it was just pie in the sky'. As Victorian Middleweight Champion Dane Herbert represented Victoria at the Nationals in South Australia that commenced on the 25th March 2004. We follow his quest. The Glory Boys Australian Championship Middleweight Contenders:
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| 2004 Australian National Championships | ||||||||||
Sleepless in Adelaide On Wednesday the 24th March 2004 The Victorian State Boxing Team went by bus and arrived 12 hours later at 8pm in Adelaide, South Australia. After a bite to eat the team finally hit their pillows around 10pm as they had to be up at 5am Thursday morning on the 25th ready for the check weigh in at 6 and the official one at 8. The official weigh-in and medical check took 2 hours before the boxers were able to have breakfast. The middleweight division finally ended up with 6 contenders with the boxers from Tasmania and Northern Territory not participating. The two highest rating boxers Jamie Pittman(NSW) and Richard Rowles(QlD) drew the short straws and faced each other in the first elimination round whilst our brother in arms Dane Herbert(Vic) drew Michael Turner(SA) with Brendon Scully(WA) and Scott Lovelock(ACT) getting a first round bye. With over 30 bouts to be contested on the 25th March the powers that be decided to run them all in one evening. Well it doesn't take an Einstein to know that 30 boxing contests equal at least 8-9 hours of boxing and the tournament concluded around 2am on the 26th March. Fine for the boxers who are on early as they and their counterpart referees and judges are fighting fit. Not so fine for the boxers on last who would normally have been in bed for at least the previous 4 hours. Also not so fine for the referees and judges on call throughout the entire program. As it is unsafe to drive a car when tired it is unsound to expect anyone be they athletes, referees, or judges to give of their best when their body clocks have closed down. Half the contests should have been conducted in the afternoon and the other half in the evening. No justification or excuse is acceptable for the program to have been conducted beyond 11pm. Cause & Consequence The principle of the seven 'Ps', Prior Preparation and Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance, says it all. The first Middleweight contest got started after 1am on Friday morning. The critical feedback on Jamie and Richard's contest was that Jamie won but the judges were either drowsing off at their computer buttons wishing they were home in bed or had already fallen to sleep because the decision went to Richard. Likewise the critical feedback was that Dane accounted for Michael fairly easily forcing the referee to put a count on him at the end of the third round and rocked him twice more in the fourth only to have the judges inexplicably give Michael the decision.
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Michaels elevation to the next round was a promotion beyond his abilities and sure enough Richard who is a known puncher put another couple of counts on him for a clear win. Scott accounted for Brendon in their encounter but Richard was too good and promptly stopped Scott in the third round of the final.
Farewell Salute We bid Dane Herbert a fond farewell after his elimination in the Australian Championships and hitch a ride with Richard Rowles from Queensland who back in 1995 was the fifth rated welterweight in the world. His personal quest is firstly to be a three time Olympian at Athens and secondly to win the Olympic Middleweight Gold Medal.
Viewpoint: Jamie Pittman should and we expect will get a second throw of the dice by being Australia's Middleweight 'B' team representative at the Oceania Regional Championships.
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2004 OCEANIA REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS |
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Winner Takes All The Oceania Regional Championships were held over the last week of April 2004 in Nuku'alofa the fair capital of Tonga, on the island of Tongatapu in the South Pacific. Australia is represented by two boxing teams at regional championships and the Middleweight contingent consisted of 2004 Australian Champion Richard Rowles in the 'A' squad and as we forecast in Viewpoint Jamie Pittman got his second roll of the dice and was the 'B' team representative. In the preliminary elimination finals on 27th April Richard beat Pio Talpeau from New Zealand on points then in the quarter finals on the 28th of April knocked out Samoan boxer Leonard Numbu in the first round. Jamie stopped his opponent Sosaia Vaka of Tonga in the second round of his quarter final bout and then on the 30th of April accounted for Ioane Taulamago of Samoa in the semi-final to gain a finals slot. Richard met Moses Lopini from Tonga in his semi-final and unleashing his explosive punching power gladly sent Moses on his way to the promised land in round two.
Only Two to Tango On the 1st May 2004 at Nuku'alofa, Tonga two time Olympian Richard Rowles again met 2003 Oceania Champ Jamie Pittman in the final Middleweight gunfight. The prize in this winner takes all battle for supremacy, selection as the Oceania Middlewight Boxing contender for Athens Olympic Games Gold. |
In their previous contest at the Australian Championships in Adelaide conducted at 1.15 am. in the morning of the 26th March Richard had won a contentious decision over Jamie. Contentious in that the critical feedback was that Jamie had clearly won the points but the decision from the sleep deprived judges (see Cause & Consequence), who like the boxers should have been tucked up in bed for the previous few hours, went to Richard. Life occasionally gives someone second chances from stuff ups and Jamie took his with both fists to hammer out a a 17 to 8 points victory over Richard to win the Oceania Middleweight final and the Olympic Games selection.
A Player in the Main Game In May 2000 endeavouring to get to the Sydney Olympics as an eighteen year old Jamie Pittman had won Australian 'B' team Welterweight selection for the Oceania Regionals. Whilst outclassing his opponent in the quarter finals he accidently received a cut below his left eye from a clash of heads that outed him from the competition. In 2004 Jamie four years older, more experienced, and a heck of a lot wiser, finally gets to roll the dice at the main game. We wish him well in his quest for Gold at Athens and will now hitch a ride on his bandwagon. Farewell Salute We bid Richard Rowles a fond farewell after his marvellous effort to become a triple Olympian and congratulate him on his wonderful success in boxing. |
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2004 ATHENS OLYMPIC GAMES |
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| Olympic Contenders Twenty-eight middleweight boxers from all regions of the globe came to the Peristeri Olympic Boxing Hall in Athens, Greece over fourteen days of August 2004 to box for an Olympic Games Gold Medal. We began the Olympic journey back in 1980 walking a mile with Australian boxer Dane Herbert who won the 2004 Victorian State Title. The baton was then taken by Queensland boxer Richard Rowles who won the Australian Title and we have now hitched a ride with his fellow Australian Jamie Pittman who pipped Richard for the 2004 Oceania Regional Championship. Round One: Saturday 14th August If Only? Twenty-four boxers competed on the 14th of August with four receiving first round byes. Jamie Pittman met Lukas Wilaschek from Germany and on the computer scoring system held a handy lead 12 to 8 points by the end of round two. Whilst the running points score tally was supposedly only available to the media most corners were aware of the tally through media insiders. Good coaches play the computer scoring system by advising their boxers when leading into the third and fourth to tactically close the bout down by moving away from the opponent and counter punch or punch first and then force a clinch. The boxer who is behind is then forced into rushing to catch up and often falls further behind. In the third Jamie failed to use those ring tactics making the fatal error of trading punches with Lukas who evened the score 17-17. The last had Jamie in front early until Lukas drew level again and fired home the winning shot five seconds from the bell. Scores 24-23. Craps The dice roll didn't favour Jamie this time but he did get to play in the sports worlds greatest game and we bid him farewell. Second Round: Saturday 21st August Musical Chairs Sixteen boxers competed in the second round and Lukas Wilaschek was pitted against Oleg Mashkin from the Ukraine who had previously accounted for Khotso Godfrey Motau from South Africa in another close contest. Scores 25-22. Oleg only hit the front against Khotso in the fourth and last round but booked his seat in the Quarter Finals with a start to finish win by eliminating Lukas. Scores 34-24. Quarter Finals: Wednesday 25th August Musical Chairs Take Two Now with the scent of medals in the air there were only eight boxers left in the race. Oleg met Thailand southpaw Suriya Prasathinphimai who was ably assisted in the corner by his Cuban coach. Suriya had accounted for Joseph Lubega of Uganda and Javid Taghiyev of Azerbaijan on his way to the quarter finals. The contest went nip and tuck for the first couple of rounds with the scores 11-11 but Oleg was eliminated when Suriya edged ahead. Scores 28-22 at the finish. |
Semi-Finals: Friday 27th August Musical Chairs Take Three Down to the final four and in sight of the the Holy Grail, an Olympic Games Gold Medal, Suriya came up against Gaydarbek Gaydarbekov from Russia the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games Silver Medallist and current European Champion. Suriya allowed Gaydarbek to take an early narrow lead and then found the mountain to steep to climb when Gaydarbek skilfully countered his concerted attacks going down 24-18. Our congratulations to Suriya on winning an Olympic Games Bronze Medal. The Final: Saturday 28th August Look Ma Top of the World And now there were two. Gaydarbekov's opponent was World Champion Gennardiy Golovkin from Kazakhstan who had received a first round bye then outpointed Ali Ahmed Khan of Pakistan 31-10, Ramadan Yasser of Egypt 31-20, and Andre Dirrell of the USA 23-18. In his last bout against southpaw boxer Andre he had shown he was a shrewd master of closing down an opponent and the contest when holding a winning lead. In the third round of that Semi-Final he played both opponent and referee who in trying to allow the boxers to box out of the clinches failed to realise that Gennardiy had no intention of doing so, being content to simply waltz forward and backward with Andre who was trying as hard as he could to extricate himself. The simple command 'Break' would have sufficed to stop the match from deteriorating into a dancing contest and also stopped Gennardiy's tactic. In the final against Gaydarbek, Gennardiy took a 6-2 first round lead but was unable to close the contest down losing the second 6-4 then the third 10-3 and was completely closed out himself when Gaydarbek took the last 10-5 for a a total 28-18 Gold Medal winning point score. Journeys End Our journey in following a young boxer along the hard road to reach the pinnacle of fistic art an Olympic Games Gold Medal has come to an end in the crowning of Gaydarbek Gaydarbekov from Russia who second time round achieved his final goal.
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