JUBA, June 10 (Xinhua) -- The sport of boxing is helping to put South Sudanese girls and boys on the same pedestal as the young nation fights to eliminate gender inequality and sexual abuse.

Martha Franco, a 22-year-old female boxer and mother of one, told Xinhua that she is aiming to attract more young girls to join the sport.

"I want to get so many medals in order to elevate the dignity and respect for girls on the same level as their male counterparts, and my expectation is to represent South Sudan at the global level," Franco said.

Franco is among the first cohort of 35 female boxers undergoing routine training sessions since June 2023.

She already boasts of having represented South Sudan in continental boxing tournaments in Algeria and Uganda.

Franco is currently preparing with some of her teammates to compete at an upcoming boxing tournament in Kigali, Rwanda scheduled for June 16.

"Boxing is not only for boys, it is for everybody. In the outside world we have seen women excelling in boxing, and so we must also represent South Sudan in boxing tournaments," she said.

Akon Deng, a 17-year-old aspiring boxer, said she is juggling boxing with her education due to her passion for the sport.

Deng disclosed that she was inspired to start training after seeing many of her peers do likewise.

"Boxing was for boys in the past, but now it is for everybody, I decided to join training after seeing my [peers] practicing. I have a passion for boxing and I hope to be a good boxer. I want to be a boxer in Juba and even beyond," Deng said.

Apiok Mayol, 13, said that she has not only improved her health but also made new friends from across different ethnic groups in the country because of boxing.

"I hope the game of boxing will be good for me and my country, I want to benefit from boxing, I also want my family to benefit and also want to represent my country," Mayol said.

Okumu Jalaba, 28, a former refugee in Uganda, said the sport of boxing has opened new horizons for young talented South Sudanese.

"I was in a refugee camp practicing boxing, but being a refugee you cannot participate in boxing tournaments," he said.

Jalaba added that he was profoundly grateful to the South Sudan Boxing Federation for having helped him realize his potential.

Since 2014, he has been part of teams that have represented the country at regional boxing tournaments.

"Boxing is the most respectful game, it is not as it sounds, most people think when you are a boxer you are a fighter. A real boxer cannot fight on the street and that is what inspired me," the boxer said.

Jalaba, who is among the few male boxers attending training at the boxing facility developed by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said his dream before he hangs up his boxing gloves is to influence many girls to embrace professional boxing.

"The game of boxing is contributing to unity, we do not have tribes, and we do not call anyone by tribe, we have boxing as the tribe and we speak Arabic and English," he said.

Ali Musiri Teyo, a 56-year-old veteran coach at the South Sudan Boxing Federation, said boxing is not only promoting unity among people but is also contributing to peace in the country.

"Boxing in South Sudan began with boys, but recently girls have joined the sport, and we want our girls to be represented in the upcoming 2026 boxing tournament in France," Teyo said, adding that there is a need to invest and establish modern training facilities for amateur boxers to realize their potential.

Another senior coach at the South Sudan Boxing Federation, Mohammed Ramadan Sebuliba, said their main focus is on mentoring and development of girls in the game of boxing because of the need to promote gender equality in the sport.

"We need to show [girls] that they can do many activities without being discriminated against," Sebuliba said, adding that the future of boxing in South Sudan is bright, with the country's boxing federation seeing boxing as a tool to promote peace and cohesion within the country.

"We need to see South Sudan boxing going far just like basketball," Sebuliba said. Enditem

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