The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WHILE Carl Hield will be going for his seventh appearance at the IBA World Boxing Championships, Rashield Williams will be attending his second straight as the amateur and professional boxers represent the Bahamas at the Humo Arena in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

From April 30 to May 14, the pair, the only two to represent the Bahamas, will be a part of the contingent of amateur and pro boxers who get to compete in the championships that will offer huge cash prizes in all of the divisions.

For Hield, this one will be dedicated to his deceased mother, Norma Hield, who passed away on January 16. He got as far as the round of 16 in 2015 in Doha, Qatar and would like to improve on that in the light middleweight or 156-pound division as he pays tribute to his mother.

“I want to give God thanks. I had a rough start to the year after my mom passed away. I took a while to get over it, but I’m back in training camp because I know this is what she would want me to continue to do,” Hield said. “That was a lot I was going through.

“So, all the hard work I put in, I have to dedicate this fight to her. I have to make sure that I put her dream of seeing me succeed in the sport. That’s where I’m at right now. She was my biggest supporter. She was my backbone. She supported me with everything that I was going through. That is a big loss. So, I have to do it now or never.”

Hield, 39, is back in Cuba where he’s training in preparation for the championships.

“My plan is to go over there and make it to the top four because while this is not a qualifier for the Olympic Games, it is a preparation for me for the CAC Games that will be held at the end of June,” Hield said. “I just want to go out there and put on a good performance and try and get to the medal round.”

The IBF is offering $200,00 for the gold medal, $100,000 for silver and $50,00 for the pair of bronze medallists.

Hield, whose wife and family still reside in Cuba, said he wanted to get back to his basic training.

“Everything is going well. I’m getting the sparring and the medical checkups every day by the doctors,” he revealed. “So, everything is going as planned. I am going to be ready for the war because of all the money involved in these championships.

“It’s going to be a lot of people coming to get their hands on the purse, so I just have to be prepared to get my share. I was sparring with professionals who were world champions, so I just have to stay focused and be prepared.”

Williams, returning after making his debut last year in Belgrade, Serbia, said he’s looking for his encore as he competes in the welterweight or 147lb division.

“I feel good, but the amateurs are completely different from the pros, so in this competition I have to be throwing more punches than I normally do,” said Williams.

“It’s a lot I have to adjust to really quick.

“So, when I’m sparring, I have to be pushing really hard for three rounds. It’s so different from the professionals.”

Williams, who is coming off a 1-1 win-loss record in his first two pro fights to push his record to 7-2, is in a training camp in Fort Lauderdale, Florida where he is working out strictly with a group of professionals.

“Everything is good. Training is good. I am training with a lot of high-class professionals, no amateurs” he stated.

“I really should be training with amateurs so I can get used to the speed and the number of punches they will be throwing.”

Does that put the 33-year-old Williams at a disadvantage?

“I don’t think so. I just have to go out there and do what I have to do,” he stated. “I don’t think it’s a disadvantage for me.”

With the hefty course on the line, Williams said he’s even more motivated to compete.

“Everybody needs that money, so that’s motivation to push even harder,” he insisted.

And to make the trip with Hield, Williams said he’s even more inspired because they connect very well, and they work together. The duo was a part of the team that represented the Bahamas at the Commonwealth Games last year in Birmingham, England.

“He’s an awesome fighter. Hope he gets to pull it off himself,” Williams said. I know I am going there to do my best and get in the mix to get some of the money.”

Williams, who is preparing for his next pro fight on June 10 when he returns from Uzbekistan, is coming off a fourth-round technical victory over Walter Raul Sarsvi at the Alessi Gym Fitness Center in Tampa, Florida on March 18 after he suffered a split decision to Elijah Flores at the Caribe Royale in Orlando, Florida, on October 15.