South Africa's Sinovuyo Mtintelwa: "Anything is possible if you believe in your dream"
Mtintelwa and eight fellow South Africans will be looking to become the first boxers since London 2012 to compete at the Olympic Games.
Boxing
Sinovuyo Mtintelwa has waited long enough.
The young South African boxing prospect has been counting the days ahead of the Africa Olympic Qualifier in Dakar, Senegal where he hopes to finally realise his dream.
Mtintelwa, who hails from what is considered the Mecca of South African boxing, has no intention of further delaying his Olympic ambitions as he aims to return to his home Mthatha with a gold medal around his neck. The 22-year-old and eight fellow South Africans will be looking to become the first boxers from their country since London 2012 to compete at the Olympic Games.
Compared to surviving the dangers of growing up in the Ngangelizwe Township, reaching Paris 2024 may seem like a walk in the park for the talented young pugilist. Mtintelwa took up boxing when he was only seven years old, which he believed saved him from a life of crime and drugs.
Mthatha, just 30 kilometres from where former South African president Nelson Mandela grew up, is one of the most dangerous places in the country where rape and murder have run rampant in recent years.
“Growing up in Mthatha was difficult because it's full of crime. Young people my age a lot of them are doing drugs, and some are criminals,” Mtintelwa said to Olympic.com.
“But growing up there helped me see things differently. It doesn't matter where you come from as long as you are passionate about what you want in life and where you want to see yourself. To me, it was a blessing in disguise because it pushed me to get out of that environment and push myself to the top.”
From a classroom ring to rubbing shoulders with a world champ
Mtintelwa said he started boxing in school in one of the classrooms before the principal decided to cancel the boxing programme. He ended up in the same gym as former IBO mini-flyweight champion Simphiwe Khonco, who served as an inspiration to the young Mtintelwa.
Mtintelwa gained some early international experience representing South Africa at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games in the Bahamas. The 22-year-old hoped for an early career Olympic debut in Tokyo 2020 (2021), but his dreams were dashed when SA National Boxing Organisation (Sanabo) did not send a team to the African qualifier due to a lack of funding.
When this happened, Mtintelwa considered turning professional, but he ultimately changed his mind when he made the national team in preparation for Olympic qualification.
“In 2020, when I missed the opportunity I said ‘Nah, the Olympics were not made for me’,” he said.
“But fortunately for me, I made it in the team, and I'm here now where I am going to the Olympic qualifiers. Hopefully, I'll make it to the top and then qualify for the Olympics. The dream was to go to Paris 2024.”
One of the continent's top prospects
Mtintelwa has made serious strides towards realising his Olympic goal graduating from the junior ranks to the seniors, winning bronze at the 2022 African Amateur Boxing Championship in Maputo, Mozambique. Continuing his upward trajectory, Mtintelwa won the men’s flyweight silver medal after suffering a 4-1 defeat to Said Mortaji of Morocco in the final.
But Mtintelwa believed that his success in the ring did not come down to his talents or hard work but was courtesy of a community of invested friends and family.
“The support of my mom, my family and the people I surrounded myself with helped me a lot,” Mtintelwa said.
“Because when something is wrong they would tell me ‘Sinovuyo, you are wrong, and you have to fix your ways. So, I can say that the people that I surround myself with are the ones who helped to become to man I am today.
Mtintelwa hopes qualifying for the Olympics will serve as motivation for other youngsters looking to escape their circumstances.
“I hope I can be some sort of motivation to the young kids growing up, looking up at me saying ‘Sinovuyo Mtintelwa grew up in this environment but he made it to the top so anything is possible if you believe in your dream then you can go for it.”
How to watch the Paris 2024 Boxing Africa Qualifier in Dakar
All the action from the quarter-finals onwards - from Wednesday 13 September - will be streamed live on Olympic Channel via Olympics.com and the official Olympics app for mobile devices.