Nigerian police constable Mary Aina aka Mary Abbey has clinched the World Boxing Foundation (WBF) International Super Bantamweight title in the UK after defeating Laura Pain on February 18.
Mary Abbey, who serves in the Lagos State Police Command, has won several awards and recommendations as a boxing referee at the amateur level. She is equally a renowned boxing judge and professional boxer with a clean sheet and several amateur wins to her name.
Pain was challenging for her first international championship honours when she faced Mary Abbey. The British had only pro debuted just seven months ago in July 2021.
She had said earlier about the fight, “I’ve got a tough girl in Mary, but I’m in boxing to climb the rankings and overcome anyone that’s in my way to get to the top.
“I train hard and sacrifice a lot so I’m excited to show my talent and make my mark on the pro scene.”
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s inspector general of police Usman Baba has congratulated Mary Abbey on her victory.
The IGP, who intends to receive the champion in Nigeria on arrival soon, commended the cop for her courage and giant strides in making the nation and the Nigeria Police Force proud. In the same vein, the IGP in a statement on Sunday by the acting Force spokesman Muyiwa Adejobi called on sports enthusiasts within the Force to be unrelenting in developing their skills and dauntless in charting new frontiers in the world of sports.
The police boss also charged officers of the Nigeria Police Force to develop and diversify their talents towards the advancement of modern policing strategies that are capable of strengthening the internal security of the country as required.
