RWANDA Kickboxing Club are set to organise the first Genocide Memorial Tournament (GMT). The one-day event will be held on June 24 at Top Gym Muvandimwe in Nyamirambo.

According to organisers, over 80 kick-boxers have already registered to participate and preparations for the competition are in advanced stages.

The latest addition to mainstream sporting disciplines in the country, kickboxing was introduced in Rwanda last September by two masters; Theoneste Twagiramungu and Bosco Manzi Ndizeye.  

However, it was not until March 27, 2018 that they got cleared by Rwanda Governance Board, officially recognising them as an association.

While speaking to Times Sport, club president Twagiramungu said that the next step is to raise awareness about the sport and spreading it to various parts of the country as well as organising many competitions, starting with the forthcoming memorial tournament in honour of the over one million lives lost during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. 

As part of the commemoration activities, local kickboxing governing body officials also visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre last month. 

Kickboxing is a group of stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, and it was developed from karate and boxing. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defence, general fitness, or as a contact sport.

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