January 08, 2004
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO-Joe Koizumi, a multi-purpose boxing person in Japan, almost survived an urgently forced landing of his Continental Airline flight for Houston in a small Midway island near Hawaii due to a serious trouble in the left-side engine of the airplane. He left Tokyo on Tuesday for Mexico via Houston to cover his Filipino boxer Joma Gamboafs ambitious crack at the WBC 108-pound belt against Jorge gTraviesoh Arce at the Centro de Exposiciones Banamex (the capacity of which is some 8,000) in Mexico City on this coming Saturday. Koizumi was forced to stay a night inside an auditorium of the abolished US military facilities along with some 300 passengers. An aircraft coming to their rescue by carrying repair materials from the mainland, the plane finally left there for Houston at 2 am after staying there for 22 hours. The Japanese manager eventually arrived in Mexico City on the night of Wednesday, taking 42 hours from Japan. Gamboa, a 30-year-old ex-WBA 105-pound champ, passed a medical exam at the Mexican national commission today (Thursday). The official weigh-in is scheduled at noon tomorrow.