That’s how I slept. And I was very grateful because…whoever it was…who saved me from being robbed, one of them was kind enough, you know, to say, ‘No, don’t do that.’

5. FROM A LETTER TO ZINDZI MANDELA, DATED 9 DECEMBER 1979, WHICH WAS CONFISCATED BY PRISON CENSORS BECAUSE HE DIDN’T ‘HAVE PERMISSION’ TO INCLUDE IT IN HER CHRISTMAS CARD THAT YEAR

I sometimes wonder what happened to our boxing gym at what used to be called St Joseph’s in Orlando East. The walls of that school and of the DOCC [Donaldson Orlando Community Centre] are drenched with sweet memories that will delight me for yrs [years]. When we trained at the DOCC in the early [19]50s the club included amateur and professional boxers as well as wrestlers. The club was managed by Johannes (Skip Adonis) Molosi, a former champ and a capable trainer who knew the history, theory and practical side of the game.3

Unfortunately, in the mid-50s he began neglecting his duties and would stay away from the gym for long periods.

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From a letter to Zindzi Mandela, dated 9 December 1979. The letter was discovered in 2010 in the South African National Archives with a handwritten note in Afrikaans by a prison censor which read: ‘The attached piece that prisoner Mandela included with his Christmas card will not be sent. The card will be sent. The prisoner has not been informed that this piece has been rejected. He does not have permission to include it with the card. I discussed this on 20 December 1979 with Brigadier du Plesssis and he agrees with the decision. Keep it in his file.’

Because of this, the boxers revolted. Twice I settled the matter, but when Skip failed to pay heed to repeated protests from the boxers, things reached breaking point. This time I was totally unable to reconcile the parties. The boxers left the DOCC and opened their own gym at St Joseph’s. Thembi and I went along with them. Simon Tshabalala, who is now abroad, became the manager, and the star boxer was, of course, still Jerry (Uyinja) Moloi who later became the Tvl [Transvaal] lightweight champ and leading contender for the national title. Apart from Jerry we produced 3 other champs: Eric (Black Material) Ntsele who won the national bantamweight from Leslie Tangee, Freddie (Tomahawk) Ngidi who became Tvl flyweight champ, a title which was later held by one of our gym mates, Johannes Mokotedi. There were other good prospects like Peter, the flyweight, who built our garage at home. He hailed from Bloemfontein and was a student at the Vacation School in Dube. Thembi himself was a good boxer and on occasions I sat until very late at night waiting for him to return from a tournament in Randfontein, Vereeniging or other centres. I and my gym mates were a closely knit family and when Mum [Winnie] came into the picture that family became even more intimate. Jerry and Eric even drove Mum around when I could not do so and the entire gym turned up at our engagement party.

By the way, Freddie worked for our firm as a clerk. He was quiet and reliable and the entire staff was fond of him. But on one Xmas eve I returned to the office and who did I find lying flat and helpless in the passage just outside the general office? Freddie. His appearance so shocked me that I rushed him to a doctor. The quack gave him one quick look and assured me that the champ was OK but that he needed more sleep. He had succumbed to the usual Xmas sprees and over-indulged himself. I drove him to his home at OE [Orlando East] quite relieved. Incidentally, I should have told you that during the dispute at the DOCC Skip accused Jerry of stabbing him in the back just as Mark Antony betrayed his friend Caesar.