Boxing fights will be resumed in Zanzibar on Sunday after the lifting of a 60-year ban on the sport.
The fighting is reportedly scheduled for Sunday. It will be held at the Mao Tse Tung Stadium in Zanzibar town. There will be a total of eight boxing matches in all, but there will not be any prize money, according to a local media outlet.
Zanzibar's Hamis Muay Thai, who began his fighting career as a kickboxer, will make his debut as a boxer, fighting against Ibrahim Mjender. Another local boxer, Musa Nassor "Banja" will face Dullah Mbabe from the mainland. Karim Mandonga from Tanzania will enter the ring with Osman Muller Junior from Zanzibar, the outlet revealed.
The ban on boxing matches in Zanzibar was introduced in the 1960s, following the revolution of 1964, as a result of which the Sultan of Zanzibar was deposed and Karume became the first president of the country. He reportedly regarded the sport as "inhumane."
However, the ban did not apply to the Tanzanian mainland. In April 1964, Tanganyika and Zanzibar, merged into the current Republic of Tanzania.
The resumption of boxing matches took place in accordance with the policy of incumbent President Hussein Mwinyi on the development of tourism and sports.