A life dedicated to coaching youngsters will be remembered at a tribute evening for a Samoan boxing coach who died of Covid-19.
The father of five, who lived in Dubai, tested positive in early October and was admitted to hospital when he developed breathing difficulties.
He died on October 5. He had not been vaccinated against the coronavirus.
Zack Taumafai, 54, dedicated much of his adult life to coaching boxing and other martial arts, his family said.
The support from the boxing community here has been overwhelming, so many people knew him have all offered their love and help. It shows the kind of man he was
Tee Taumafai,
daughter
“It was the first time I ever heard my dad ask to be taken to the hospital,” said Tee Taumafai, his daughter.
“Dad was a pretty stubborn guy and didn’t like hospitals at all. A couple of weeks earlier he was admitted for food poisoning but managed to leave before he was supposed to because he didn’t want to be there.
“Of course he went straight to the gym.
“Dad was pretty healthy and when he was admitted to hospital for Covid the doctors were surprised at how fit he was for his age."
On December 11 there will be a tribute event held in Taumafai’s name at JW Marriott Marquis Hotel in Business Bay in Dubai.
The event will feature amateur exhibition fights between boxers coached by Taumafai.
A former professional kickboxer, Taumafai first came to Dubai in 2006 during a stopover from Ghana, where he wanted to establish a combat sports gym.
What started off as one-to-one coaching sessions soon developed into a new life for him in the UAE.
Taumafai started in a small gym, coaching and earning Dh1,500 ($408) a month. The gym grew quickly and it was then he decided to set up on his own.
Ms Taumafai, 33, came to Dubai in 2008 and coached in small community halls and other low-key venues alongside her father.
The rest of the family, three sons and another daughter, came over in 2009 and opened the KO Gym in Dubai Marina. The Taumafais continued to run the centre until 2016.
“Ever since my siblings and I were kids, martial arts were a big part of our lives,” Ms Taumafai said.
“We were practically born in the gym, and came from a big family of fighters. It is in our blood.”
Zack Taumafai was born in Samoa and emigrated to New Zealand as a teenager. He worked in several different industries as a young man, including for Nestle and a fish market, before moving his young family to Australia to begin their schooling.
He began setting up private gyms and coaching when he started his new life in Australia.
During his time in the UAE, Taumafai staged 10 semi-professional and professional bouts and more than 40 corporate boxing and combat events.
Representatives from 146 boxing federations from around the world sent condolences to the family.
“Dad loved teaching the kids how to box, it is what gave him most satisfaction,” his daughter said.
“The discipline was always the most important thing with Dad, he made it clear to us he didn’t want us to use our skills outside the gym.
“We would get into fights in school, and we were not allowed to do what we knew. It was tough, and Mum didn’t like us to compete in the ring, but she was still very supportive.
“Dad had a tough exterior, but inside he was very soft and emotional.
“He welcomed anyone to our family and built this community around him. He made sure they were part of a big family.
“The support from the boxing community here has been overwhelming, so many people knew him and loved him and they have all offered their love and help. It shows the kind of man he was.”
What it means to be a conservationist
Who is Enric Sala?
Enric Sala is an expert on marine conservation and is currently the National Geographic Society's Explorer-in-Residence. His love of the sea started with his childhood in Spain, inspired by the example of the legendary diver Jacques Cousteau. He has been a university professor of Oceanography in the US, as well as working at the Spanish National Council for Scientific Research and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biodiversity and the Bio-Economy. He has dedicated his life to protecting life in the oceans. Enric describes himself as a flexitarian who only eats meat occasionally.
What is biodiversity?
According to the United Nations Environment Programme, all life on earth – including in its forests and oceans – forms a “rich tapestry of interconnecting and interdependent forces”. Biodiversity on earth today is the product of four billion years of evolution and consists of many millions of distinct biological species. The term ‘biodiversity’ is relatively new, popularised since the 1980s and coinciding with an understanding of the growing threats to the natural world including habitat loss, pollution and climate change. The loss of biodiversity itself is dangerous because it contributes to clean, consistent water flows, food security, protection from floods and storms and a stable climate. The natural world can be an ally in combating global climate change but to do so it must be protected. Nations are working to achieve this, including setting targets to be reached by 2020 for the protection of the natural state of 17 per cent of the land and 10 per cent of the oceans. However, these are well short of what is needed, according to experts, with half the land needed to be in a natural state to help avert disaster.
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Started: established in 2016 and launched in July 2017
Based: Singapore, with offices in the UAE, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand
Sector: FinTech, wealth management
Initial investment: $500,000 in seed round 1 in 2016; $2.2m in seed round 2 in 2017; $5m in series A round in 2018; $12m in series B round in 2019; $16m in series C round in 2020 and $25m in series D round in 2021
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Stage: series D
Investors: EightRoads Ventures, Square Peg Capital, Sequoia Capital India
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