GBBC President Peter Abdool agitates for ‘Sixhead’ national monument

Jun 03, 2015 Sports

President of the Guyana Boxing Board of Control, Peter Abdool, is making every effort to influence the

Peter Abdool

sculpting of a life size monument in honour of the late World Boxing Association (WBA) welterweight champion, Andrew ‘Sixhead’ Lewis, whose untimely death shocked the entire country a mere month ago. Towards this end, Abdool has started to agitate for this honour for the fallen champion and vows to press on to the end.
Abdool, who is also the President of the Caribbean Boxing Federation (CABOFE), is currently lobbying for this accolade to be conferred on a man who he feels have given yeoman and exceptional service to the boxing community but most importantly, Guyana.
Lewis, who died in a car accident recently, became the first Guyanese fighting under the Golden Arrowhead to win a world title. On the 17th February 2001 at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, amidst all odds, he challenged the then World Boxing Association (WBA) welterweight champion, American, James Page and came away with a stunning victory after stopping his man in the 98th second of the seventh round.
“I think that it is only fitting we might better appreciate what Andrew’s achievement meant to our country and the sporting history of our nation and its extraordinary significance at that particular moment in time,” said the GBBC boss.
Mr. Abdool said that ever since that historic night he has had renewed respect for Lewis and holds him in high esteem. “I speak on behalf of the entire executive of the Guyana Boxing Board of Control when

Andrew Lewis

I say that Lewis will forever be our eternal hero,” he said. He is also adamant that Lewis has etched his name, not only into the local annuls of history, but also into the heart of every Guyanese.
It is for this reason that Mr. Abdool strongly supports the establishment of a statue to commemorate Lewis sterling feat. “The Guyana Boxing Board of Control strongly advocates that a national monument in the form of a life sized statue be erected in a prominent location in commemoration of this Guyanese icon as has been done in other countries in honour of their sports legends,” said Mr. Abdool.
He is bent on this project so much so that he is willing to invest personal funds and time into its realization. He is also beseeching Government input as well as support from the corporate community.
Indeed Guyanese boxers have installed a rich legacy that has resulted in this country clinching major accolades in the fistic arena. Other noted  achievements are Patrick Forde’s losing attempts to  Salvadore ‘Babyface Assassin’ Sanchez for the WBC World Featherweight title and later a 13th round stoppage at the hands of Eusebio Pedroza for the WBA World featherweight belt, Lennox Blackmoore’s technical knockout loss of the WBA World Super Lightweight title to Aaron ‘The Hawk’ Pryor, middleweight pugilist, Wayne Harris’ defeat at the hands of American, Reggie Johnson for his WBA world middleweight title and Anthony ‘The Pearl’ Andrews’ loss to Jorge Fernando Castro for his WBA World Middleweight title. It was amidst this dismal situation that Lewis squared off with James Page and propelled Guyana to the world stage.
Mr. Abdool believes that ‘Sixhead’s’ achievement was the catalyst to the many other world champions that have succeeded him and as such he must be given that respect. “He came to a door that advocated ‘world champions only, no Guyanese allowed’ and he simply kicked it down,” Abdool emphasized.
Indeed, the GBBC boss summed up his contention when he said, “Lewis’ singular achievement represented a culmination of all of the countless years of toil and effort of all who preceded him – our amateur ranks through which he had come, our loyal and dedicated trainers, cornermen, sparring partners, the Guyana Boxing Board itself and the many, many loyal supporters over the years. His spectacular seizing of the world title was at last, justification for all of the hard work over the years; a vindication as it were, that it had not all been in vain – that our great and unyielding belief that our fighters were among the very best in the world was finally proven and justified in spectacular fashion for all the world to see.”
It is this conviction that has informed Mr. Abdool’s conviction that a national monument is just reward for such a great son of the soil.