11.08.05 – Kenyan featherweight Damaris Muthoni, Fight Productions first and only female boxer, has decided to waste no time at all in her bid for fistic glory and goes straight into a 10-round championship bout in her first outing in Germany, scheduled for September 10 in Karlsruhe.. She will meet undefeated Ina Menzer, 9-0 (5), for the vacant WIBF Intercontinental featherweight crown on the undercard of probably women’s boxings greatest-ever champion, Regina Halmich.
In her debut for Olaf Schroeder’s company, the 29-year-old reversed one of her two losses by outpointing local Kenyan rival Jane Kuvalani, before heading to Germany to team up with new trainer Mario Guedes, the former International German heavyweight champion from Aachen. Already, local newspapers are hot on the story of the poor Nairobi girl stepping into the unknown to try her luck with nothing but a pair of gloves and lots of hopes. Soon, a German television team will take up the story as well, reports Guedes, who himself is a known and respected sports personality in his hometown near the Dutch-Beligian border.
“My plan was to first feature Damaris in some feeling-out fights,” says manager Schroeder, “but then came the offer to face Menzer – and how can I be opposed to what Damaris considers her greatest break in boxing and life?”. According to Guedes, Muthoni, 6-2-2 (2), has made tremendous progress since training with him three times a day: “One thing I can guarantee, Damaris will be fit as a fiddle, she has nothing to do here other than training. Menzer will not have one second to take a breath, Damaris will be all over her and I am as hungry for the win now as a trainer as I was when I boxed myself!”.
“All the jealous boxing people back home in Kenya told me I’m a stupid girl to hook up with Olaf and Mario, while they of course never did anything with my career. I am out to prove them wrong! It wasn’t easy to start this, but now I know that boxing can change my life for the better. I’m so happy for what happens here for me and I will do whatever it takes to become a champion!” states Muthoni enthusiastically.