The 87th ABA Men & Women Clifford Cup Tournament is to box off starting tomorrow till the 31st of October to be held at the Sugathadasa indoor stadium.
Since the introduction by the Amateur Boxing Association of Sri-Lanka (ABA) in 1927, the Clifford Cup was confined to team participation in which a team had to comprise of at least of 4 competitors. In the inaugural year the Clifford Cup Championship was won by Ceylon Garrison Artillery team. In addition to the National Championships and the Layton cup, the Clifford cup was still considered a major boxing meet in Sri Lanka.
This year the Clifford cup will be held at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium for the 87th consecutive year commencing tomorrow till the 31st of October 2014 with immense participation of young pugilists. Champions from the armed forces and affiliated MAS clubs will vie for the coveted Clifford Cup at this event.
This meet is open to all male boxers who are over 18 years and below 40 years of age and female boxers who are over 19 years and below 40 years. The age of male boxers are determined on the date of birth. The age of female boxers are determined on the year of birth. The male and female boxers who have already qualified to take part in major meets or were Winners/Runners up at the ABA Novices, Intermediates, Stubbs Shield and winners of Junior Nationals are qualified to take part in this meet.
The general weigh-in preceded by the medical examination for the male and female boxers was held on the 27th October 2014 at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium with the draw being placed on the same day. An important note here is that the AIBA approved computer draw and the seeding system was used for the draw.
As for the entry requirements, since this is a team championship, every club is expected to enter a minimum of 4 boxers for the male and female weight categories separately and those boxers should fulfill all eligibility requirements of this meet.
M.Y.M Diilshan, armed with experience from Glasgow is a candidate ready to battle it out again at the Clifford Cup this year. He also took part in the 17th Asian Games which recently concluded in Korea. Shiromali Weerarathne and Erandhi Silva who took part in the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games will also be two athletes to look out for who will be competing in the women’s category representing their respective clubs and weight categories. It is also noteworthy that Suresh Ranasinghe, the Layton Cup’s best boxer of 2014 will not be participating at the Clifford Cup due to training injury.
All winners, runners up and semifinalist will receive medals and certificates while special awards are to be presented to the best male boxer and best female boxer. The Champion Club will be awarded the Clifford Cup Challenge Trophy depending on the number of Gold, Silver and Bronze medals won.
The public is invited to witness the best of the home grown pugilists in action from tomorrow till the 31st of October at the Sugathadasa indoor stadium.
