Imo State boxer Chukwuemeka Igboanugo died at the ongoing National Sports Festival in Asaba, Delta State on Tuesday.
However, a boxing coach has blamed the medical personnel at the venue for their treatment and inaction; adding that they could have saved the athlete’s life.
Igboanugo was said to have passed out after he received multiple punches in the chin from Anambra’s Gaby Amagor in their 86kg category bout.
The referee thereupon ended the fight after he failed to recover.
Imo State
“He was immediately taken out of the ring for medical treatment before being rushed to the hospital, where he was confirmed dead,” a boxing official stated.
But Borno State coach, Endurance Aberegidi, who was at the venue when the boxer was knocked down, told our correspondent what happened in the ring on Monday and how the boxer gave up the ghost.
“It was a pathetic situation. This guy trained for years and after getting a national opportunity, he then dies in the ring,” he said.
“I was in the ringside when he fell and the medics rushed in and tried to revive him. He slightly responded and they took him to the emergency unit, then they asked for the boxer’s coach.
“I walked up to them and they told me that the boy was not responding to treatment,” Aberegidi said.
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The coach told our correspondent how much time they wasted looking for the Imo coach, instead of treating Igboanugo immediately.
“They were looking for the coach for over 20 minutes as the boy was not responding to treatment. I don’t know why they wasted so much time treating the boy. They should have focused on treating him. They said the boy didn’t allow anyone to treat him and after a short while, they came back and said he had given up the ghost,” he said.
