The 2009 Golden Gloves champion Ngo Okafor has a hotly anticipated project in the pipeline. No, I am not referring to the actor’s silver screen debut in the romantic comedy, The Rebound, starring Catherine Zeta Jones, which is due out on DVD this fall. I am referring to the The Best of NGO 2011, and I mean it’s the best of Ngo. It’s his calendar debut and Okafor isn’t shy.
“I chose to do a calendar to raise awareness and to raise money for fighters in Nigeria. They don’t have shoes. They share head gear, mouthpieces and gloves. There are a vast number of communicable diseases that you can catch by doing such. It’s appalling. This calendar will raise money for the equipment they desperately need. There are so many talented sportsman in Nigeria. They just need help,” he divulges.
The Massachusetts-born Nigerian became a two-time heavyweight champion, winning back-to-back Golden Gloves tournaments within three years of beginning his career in 2005. Since achieving the highest distinction in boxing, Okafor has been named the new face for the sportswear empire Under Armour and is currently considered the most downloaded African American model on the Internet.
“My whole life was built around lifting weights to get bigger and stronger,” he begins when asked how he transitioned from being a pretty boy — a model and actor — to being a pugilist.
“I sparred with these guys who came into my gym [Mendez Boxing in Manhattan] and I was like ‘Hey can I jump in?’ They [asked] how long have you been boxing? They told me I had skill and should pursue it. I was modeling and acting so I didn’t want to hurt my money. It wasn’t until one day I went to this other gym and I saw this guy hitting the bag and I was like, ‘damn what was I doing?’ He took me to meet his trainer. I saw this as an opportunity to a play sports the way I always dreamt of doing,” he says.
Okafor has created a documentary, Triumph of the Will, to encourage young men. The feature-length documentary chronicles his journey from Nigeria to the pinnacle of the boxing world. –yvette caslin
Support the cause and purchase your limited edition calendar at www.getingo.com.
