Namibia will host the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF) Africa Championships next year, following an announcement by the IMMAF on Oct. 9.
Speaking to Xinhua on Thursday, Carlos De Sousa, Namibian coach and owner of Sousa Studio, said the event means a lot for the development of the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) in Namibia.
“The development of MMA has been slow but progressive,” Sousa said, adding that the 2024 IMMAF Africa Championships will be another milestone in the evolution of African MMA, as IMMAF and MMA Namibia seek to gain recognition from the International Olympic Committee for the discipline.
The 2024 IMMAF Africa Championships will be supported by the African MMA Confederation which will ensure the highest standards of the event as they seek to continue the evolution of the sport in the region.
“We could not have done it if the athletes were not part of the journey,” he said, stressing that he would not have invested in the sport if he did not have passion.
According to De Sousa, the dates of the championships will be released soon once he engages with Namibia’s Sports Commission. “Then we can give the dates to the public,” he added.
Although South Africa once dominated the IMMAF Africa landscape, over the past few years nations such as Namibia, Angola, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have all become major players in their own right.