PHILIPSBURG—Egmar Cozier won a gold medal at the Caribbean Development Boxing Tournament held in the Cliff Anderson Sports Auditorium, Georgetown, Guyana, from November 26-29.
Cozier was part of small team from St. Maarten that included fellow boxer Anthony Philis and Coach Shawn Blair.
Cozier (16) boxing as a junior light middleweight defeated Kenwal Hodge from Anguilla, the fight going the full three rounds, with Cozier winning by unanimous decision.
Anthony Philis (17) in the Bantam weight category was forced to retire in the final third round when the referee stopped the fight due a serious cut on the lip of Philis. He was boxing against Jamali Brady from Barbados who Coach Shawn Blair observed was a more experienced boxer.
It was the first time in the ring in a tournament for both Cozier and Philis.
“I am extremely proud of both boxers for going into the ring for the first time. They did St. Maarten proud,” said Blair.
Blair said the tournament was the biggest since the last time it was held in St. Maarten in 2007. 13 countries took part.
Anguilla was also represented at the tournament, sending some six to seven boxers.
“I want to give a special thank you to the Anguilla Amateur Boxing Association, their President and Coach, who bailed us out towards the end when we were a little short of money. They did a very good job winning gold and silver medals, and I want to thank them for their support,” added Blair
Blair said the trip to Guyana would not have been possible without the support of Prime Minister William Marlin, Nagico, Telem, Christopher Emmanuel, Brown, George from Quality Snacks, Marci Cook from Marci’s Mega Gym where Philis trains, and Insel Air which offered a reduced fare.
