By Linda Ximba |
Boxing trainer Khangelani Jack and his boxer Siphamandla Baleni finally returned to South Africa on Thursday morning, arriving at OR Tambo International Airport in Kempton Park after being stranded in Asia for more than a week.
The pair expressed relief after landing back home following a difficult travel ordeal that began after Baleniβs defeat to Filipino boxer Regie Suganob in the Philippines last month. Jack, an award-winning trainer, and Baleni had remained stuck in Asia due to disrupted travel arrangements.
βWe have landed at OR Tambo International Airport,β a relieved Jack, the 2023 Trainer of the Year, confirmed shortly after their arrival on Thursday morning.
Originally, the duo were scheduled to leave the Philippines via Doha, Qatar, last Sunday. However, their travel plans were thrown into chaos when several Asian airspaces were closed following escalating tensions in the Middle East.
The closures came after the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran, prompting retaliation from Iran against US military bases in the region. The situation disrupted international flights and prevented Jack and Baleni from departing Manila as planned.
They eventually managed to fly from Manila to Singapore last Saturday, but further delays followed when they missed two connecting flights that would have taken them through either Malaysia or Ethiopia before their final leg to Johannesburg.
Their safe return was made possible through the intervention of the Department of Sport, Boxing South Africa (BSA), the South African High Commission in Singapore, and Filipino promoter Floriezyl Podot of PMI Bohol Boxing Promotions.
Jack, from Mdantsane, and Baleni, who was born in Mthatha, are expected to continue their journey to KuGompo City later on Thursday afternoon.
