Boxing: Police stripped of title, handed to KDF

Brian Ogina (left) of Coast ABC lands a left punch to Morris Ochieng (right) of Police ABC in their fly weight category during the Boxing Association of Kenya 5th and final leg league in Mombasa at Uwanja wa Mbuzi in Kongowea, November 12, 2017. Police collected a maximu of 103 points to be crowned this year's champions after beating KDF by one point. [PHOTO BY GIDEON MAUNDU/STANDARD].

KDF declared national champions two months after Kenya Police had been installed local kings

Boxing association took step after scrutiny of judges’ cards revealed errors in tallying.

Kenya Police’s Chafua Chafua boxing team has been stripped of the national league title, which was handed over to bitter rivals Kenya Defence Forces.

The law enforcers were declared champions in November last year at Uwanja wa Mbuzi ground in Mombasa at the end of the national league with 103 points, a point ahead of KDF.

However, following allegations of poor officiating where some boxers were unfairly denied victory, the Boxing Association of Kenya (BAK) order investigations for all judges’ cards.

And yesterday, the BAK national executive committee, headed by its president, John Kameta, at the start of a three-day retreat in Mombasa, announced that investigations had revealed that Kenya Police did not win the league fairly.

“We are bound to make mistakes and handing over victory to Kenya Police was one of the human errors committed by some judges. We have tallied all the results and found that KDF’s Dennis Muthama won his semi-final flyweight match against Morris Ochieng of Police, but the latter was awarded the victory. Although Ochieng went ahead to lose 2-1 in the final to Brian Agina of Coast Combined, he did not deserve the semi-final victory,” said Kameta.

Subsequently, KDF were yesterday declared the 2017 national champions to successfully retain the title for the second year running with 122 points while Kenya Police were second with 120 points. Third position went to Kenya Prisons with 37 points.

KDF coach Samuel Magima said justice had been served. “We had the best boxers in 2017 and we wondered as the technical bench how Kenya Police won,” said Magima in an interview, adding that he had produced the highest number of boxers to the national team to the Commonwealth Games.

Coach George 'Foreman' Onyango of Police remained optimistic that his boxers would come back stronger this year.

“We have taken the decision to trip us of victory positively and as a challenge to engage our winning gear in 2018,” said Onyango.

Kameta said the national team for both men and women starts its residential camp today in readiness for the India Boxing Championships set for January 28 to February 1.