Fans and social media almost went into turmoil when Brazilian Keno Marley lost to Briton Benjamin Whittaker. In a controversial result, the boxer was defeated in the quarterfinals of the Tokyo Olympics and was left with no medal chances.
Even members of the COB (Olympic Committee of Brazil) were irritated by the judges’ decision. Keno’s reaction drew attention to his calm.
“We have a lot to develop. I’m only 21 years old, have time to work and a couple of Olympics ahead of me. I made some mistakes and that resulted in the result, but I’m very happy with my performance”, he explained, in a serene tone of voice.
His sportsmanship was another high point of the participation of Brazilian boxing in Japan. The result was also historic. Three medals were won: one gold (Hebert Conceição), one silver (Bia Ferreira) and one bronze (Abner Teixeira). The team in Tokyo consisted of seven athletes.
Keno’s reaction and the eloquent declarations of other boxers in the country in the competition were the result of the work of the permanent team, maintained by the CBB (Brazilian Boxing Confederation) and led by coach Mateus Alves.
The team gathers to watch films, documentaries, is encouraged to read books, be informed about what is happening in the world and attend lectures.
Five months after the Olympics, Keno agrees that the judges’ decision could have been different. But, as there was no way out, the best thing was to accept it and move on.
“I also thought the result was controversial. But I wouldn’t blame it on [pela derrota] at the referee. I had to analyze where I went wrong. What was I going to throw a stone for and not be able to change the result? I had to start preparing for the next tournament,” he says.
When profanity said by Hebert Conceição in one of the fights leaked into the sound of the TV, Mateus asked the athlete to replace them with “rocambole”. It worked until the moment he knocked out Ukrainian Oleksandr Khyzniak and took the gold medal.
“My greatest happiness, in addition to the medals, was the good impression the athletes left at the Olympics. Our team was also surprised by their posture. Everyone wanted Keno to blame refereeing. He showed a lot of maturity for a 21-year-old guy”, he praises the coach.
“I call it a champion mind. It’s a job. It’s not just about competing, it’s about cultural learning. We encourage them to study another language, read it. Abner gave all interviews in English. We have to show that boxers don’t have to speaking wrongly, without cultural level. It’s another fight we have.”
Before the trip to Tokyo, Matthew asked athletes to watch two episodes of the series Loser, about athletes who turned defeats into later joys. The first was “An Ex-Wrestler”, which tells the story of Michael Bentt, a boxer who had to live with an abusive father. The other was “Judgment,” about the career of black French skater Surya Bonaly.
“We watch many documentaries that talk about racism. Our team has the overwhelming majority of black people. Fighting is not just fighting. It’s being a high-performance athlete, it’s understanding the importance of being an athlete, having posture”, completes Mateus.
Everyone got a vacation this month. Keno Marley went to Switzerland to ski.
“It’s a job to show that boxing is not a sport made by people who don’t know how to express themselves. We can show what we think, give good interviews and we want to prove it to the world”, says the athlete.
He finished his Physical Education course this year. He is proud to say that he received grade 10 in his TCC (Course Completion Paper) on ways that physical education can combat sedentary lifestyles.
“Within the national team, we work on the importance of respect, sympathy, being good with everyone and not attributing defeats to someone else’s motives. [ao boxe]. We have been getting results like this. Wherever we go, the Brazilian team is seen as the friendliest, the most friendly,” recalls the president of the CBB (Brazilian Boxing Confederation), Marcos Cândido de Brito.
The idea is to keep the results and cultural work in 2022, in competitions that are on the horizon. There are the South American Games, where the goal is to be champion by team. In the continental championship, a higher level tournament that brings together athletes from all over America, the focus is on individual medals.
It is also necessary to find a replacement for Hebert Conceição, who decided to turn professional and signed a contract with Probellum Global Media, an agency company. Cândido de Brito considered the decision hasty. For Matthew, it is part. He sees this as a natural process, especially in men’s boxing, where the cash prizes are bigger.
With boxing confirmed in Paris-2024, the team can do a long-term Olympic job. For Los Angeles-2028, the modality is still not taken for granted.
“The decision [de confirmar o esporte em 2024] it brought relief, no doubt. It is an agonizing expectation, even though we have always had faith that boxing, due to its tradition, would be maintained”, says the president of the CBB.
To satisfy the IOC (International Olympic Committee), boxing will have criteria for defining more objective fights. This could avoid controversial decisions like the one that eliminated Keno Marley in Tokyo.
“This number may increase during the cycle, but we are going to win two medals in Paris. Entre Bia {Ferreira], Abner [Teixeira], Keno and Wanderson [de Oliveira] we are going to bring two medals”, prophesies Mateus Alves.
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