Michele
07-01-2004, 09:24 PM
New Zealand Baby Killer Olympic Boxer
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/SPORT/0...ewzealand.reut/
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (Reuters) -- New Zealand boxing officials have come under attack for choosing a man who was convicted of killing his infant daughter to represent the country at the Athens Olympics.
The officials are standing firm over their decision to pick Soulan Pownceby for the August Games despite the controversy the selection has provoked.
While there are people who believe the light-middleweight has already been punished for his crime, many more think he is unsuitable to represent the country on the world stage.
The moral debate over Pownceby's inclusion in the team has raised a host of ethical issues, with some people portraying him as a model of rehabilitation while women's groups and organisations campaigning against domestic violence continue to denounce the selection.
Sheryl Hann, a spokeswoman for the Women's Refuge, said she was horrified at Pownceby's selection and would write to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to register her objections.
"It's a shameful and appalling message to send to the national community, as well as internationally, that we have violent criminals as our sporting heroes," Hann told the Dominion Post.
Even the New Zealand Prime Minister, Helen Clark, got caught up in the debate, calling on the boxer to apologize for his past.
She told Pownceby to "stare the camera down the lens and say: 'I did things which were terribly wrong, I regret that, I now want to put my life to the purpose of persuading other people that have done what I have done to turn a corner'."
Pownceby initially refused to speak publicly but then took the prime minister's advice, making a tearful appearance on national television and pleading for a second chance.
"It's been a very hard thing for me to deal with because I lost my daughter," Pownceby said.
"I can only go forward. I can't change the past. I wish I could, but I can't."
It is not unusual for boxers to come from a background of violence but even by the standards of his chosen sport, Pownceby's upbringing was tougher than most.
According to newspaper reports, Pownceby was abandoned by his Navy father, then his mother died of cancer when he was 17.
His elder brother regularly beat him and his sister, whom he was close to, was murdered in 1990 by her partner.
Sport was Pownceby's only salvation. A natural athlete, he excelled at running and rugby and was developing an interest in boxing.
Brain damage
But in 1995, at the age of 20, Pownceby was jailed for four years for the manslaughter of his five-month-old daughter who sustained irreversible brain damage after being struck.
Pownceby continued to train while in prison and took up the sport seriously on his release, winning three Oceania titles before his controversial selection for Athens.
He is the only New Zealand boxer to qualify for Athens and his supporters say his commitment and devotion to his sport have been his rehabilitation.
But not everyone is convinced. Pownceby has added seven assault convictions to his record, including three against women, since leaving prison, though none in the last four years.
Should this man be allowed to box for the olympics?
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/SPORT/0...ewzealand.reut/
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (Reuters) -- New Zealand boxing officials have come under attack for choosing a man who was convicted of killing his infant daughter to represent the country at the Athens Olympics.
The officials are standing firm over their decision to pick Soulan Pownceby for the August Games despite the controversy the selection has provoked.
While there are people who believe the light-middleweight has already been punished for his crime, many more think he is unsuitable to represent the country on the world stage.
The moral debate over Pownceby's inclusion in the team has raised a host of ethical issues, with some people portraying him as a model of rehabilitation while women's groups and organisations campaigning against domestic violence continue to denounce the selection.
Sheryl Hann, a spokeswoman for the Women's Refuge, said she was horrified at Pownceby's selection and would write to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to register her objections.
"It's a shameful and appalling message to send to the national community, as well as internationally, that we have violent criminals as our sporting heroes," Hann told the Dominion Post.
Even the New Zealand Prime Minister, Helen Clark, got caught up in the debate, calling on the boxer to apologize for his past.
She told Pownceby to "stare the camera down the lens and say: 'I did things which were terribly wrong, I regret that, I now want to put my life to the purpose of persuading other people that have done what I have done to turn a corner'."
Pownceby initially refused to speak publicly but then took the prime minister's advice, making a tearful appearance on national television and pleading for a second chance.
"It's been a very hard thing for me to deal with because I lost my daughter," Pownceby said.
"I can only go forward. I can't change the past. I wish I could, but I can't."
It is not unusual for boxers to come from a background of violence but even by the standards of his chosen sport, Pownceby's upbringing was tougher than most.
According to newspaper reports, Pownceby was abandoned by his Navy father, then his mother died of cancer when he was 17.
His elder brother regularly beat him and his sister, whom he was close to, was murdered in 1990 by her partner.
Sport was Pownceby's only salvation. A natural athlete, he excelled at running and rugby and was developing an interest in boxing.
Brain damage
But in 1995, at the age of 20, Pownceby was jailed for four years for the manslaughter of his five-month-old daughter who sustained irreversible brain damage after being struck.
Pownceby continued to train while in prison and took up the sport seriously on his release, winning three Oceania titles before his controversial selection for Athens.
He is the only New Zealand boxer to qualify for Athens and his supporters say his commitment and devotion to his sport have been his rehabilitation.
But not everyone is convinced. Pownceby has added seven assault convictions to his record, including three against women, since leaving prison, though none in the last four years.
Should this man be allowed to box for the olympics?