Exclusive Interview

The Express: Baba (to Rashid’s father), how does it feel to see that all your children are following your footsteps and are so successful?
Ali Matumla: They liked boxing, so they are doing it. I am glad I could support them in every way I could. I used to fight from 1960 to the early 70’s; then I was hired by a sisal company boxing team in Tanga to train them.

The Express: (to Rashid) How old were you then?
Rashid: I was very young at that time, but I do remember him working out at home.
Ali Matumla: Every time I would box, he joined me with his little hands. He tried to make a fist and punch in the air. (laughter)
Rashid: Enough Baba, you don’t have to go into the details!

The Express: (To Rashid) when did you start boxing?
Rashid: In 1979, I began amateur training and then joined TPDF team until 1985 while I was serving the Force. But at that time, I was not allowed to box for money. In 1994, I left the army and began professional boxing. In 1998, I won the light middle weight world championship.
Ali Matumla: A lot of people came to cheer him that day although I knew he would win.

The Express: (to Matumla senior) where you his trainer?
Rashid: He supervises our daily training but a few weeks before a major fight we get a trainer. Baba is our manager; he deals with the administrative part of it and of course supervises our daily practice. As you can see, he is relaxed waiting to pick faults in Mbwana.
(Mbwana has been hitting the punch bag while we were talking at their private gym)
Ali Matumla: Oh yes. If he makes mistakes I have to correct him.

The Express: What entails your daily training?
Rashid: We come here to the gym everyday in the evening for boxing. We wake up at five in the morning for jogging and fitness training like stretching. We run 10 kilometres everyday, except on Sundays, when we jog for 15 km.

The Express: If you were not a boxer, what do you think you would be?
Rashid: A businessman.
Ali Matumla: He would be a soldier in the army. Because that is where he was before.

The Express: (to Rashid) What will you do after retirement?
Rashid: Maybe I’ll get into business.
Ali Matumla: He will coach others, especially his children. The Express: (to Rashid) Would you want your children to box as well?
Rashid: Oh no. I will not force them into anything. I want them to study first and have a career they would want to pursue.

The Express: (to Ali Matumla) Baba, would you like to fight again?
Ali Matumla: (with a smile on his face) I want to have at least one fight to show the world that I have been in the ring once and I am still strong. My boys are here to coach me. I have the strength; all I need is some training because things are different than they were in the 60’s when I used to fight. The rules are different now.
Mbwana: (taking a break from the punch bag) We will take him for a jog in the mornings and evenings “hamna kulala” (no sleeping), we’ll train him and make sure he is in a good shape.
Rashid’s mother: Hey! (staring at her husband) At this age you want to fight. (Laughter)

The Express: (to Rashid’s mother) Mama, do you enjoy watching your children fight?
Rashid’s mother: I get scared; it is so terrifying to see men beating each other. I went to a game once and I had nightmares for days. But I am proud of them. I am very happy when they come home victorious.

The Express: (to Rashid) Which was your most competitive fight?
Rashid: In 1996, when I boxed with a guy from South Africa. That was my first fight with a foreigner and his technique was very different from what I was used to so it was difficult for me to monitor his weak areas. I won anyway.

The Express: Is there any major difference in training given in Tanzania and other countries?
Rashid: In some countries, they have better equipment for training; also they have a proper dietician to monitor their weight. For us, you can get such facilities if you have the money and a full time coach is very expensive to pay. Besides, it depends on the opponent’s ability; some can be very swift in moving while others quick in punching. So, one has to study the opponent very carefully before attacking.

The Express: (to the parents) Your daughter Rehema Matumla has also followed her bothers into boxing, a sport not so common for African women. How do you feel about this?
Ali Matumla: She would watch her brothers fight and wear gloves and try to box. I could not deprive her of her right to choose a career. Had she got into things like smoking, alcohol and marijuana we would definitely have rebuked her, but boxing is just a game like any other game. So I trained her together with her brothers and I am proud of her now.
(The Express was unable to talk to Rehema due to her busy schedule at the TPDF where she is working full time for the Force and the boxing team)

The Express: (to Rashid and Mbwana) So did you give guys give each other a black eye when you were young?
Rashid: Oh no. We had utmost respect for each other and the game. We would play and have our misunderstandings as children but we never had a real fight.
Mbwana: Even today, when we train together, we do it with respect for each other.
Ali Matumla: Thank God, I have never had to to referee a fight, neither in the house nor outside. They (Rashid and Mbwana) have never misused their skills to hurt anyone and that is good. You see if you have a talent then you must be responsible with it. Just because you are a boxer you can’t go hurting others.