Sarah 'Angel of War' Achieng' brings good news to Kenyan pro boxers

Sarah "Angel of War" Achieng of Kenya fight Edith Soledad Matthysse of Argentina. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

Kenya's professional boxers will always remember 2025.

It was a year like none other, as they retained a global title with much pleasure and pride.

World Boxing Foundation (WBF) super lightweight champion Sarah Achieng' saved and promoted Kenya's professional boxing reputation in the region and across the globe.

Achieng' comfortably retained the WBF title just the same way former World Boxing Council super-bantamweight champion Fatuma Zarika did for a record four times in the past.

She did it against all odds at a time when the trend of winning or retaining world titles had eluded Kenyan professional boxers for far too long.

In fact, more focus was on local matches. Chances of having matches abroad was becoming a pipe dream.

While retaining the title, Achieng' defeated Ferisha Mashauri of Tanzania on unanimous points' decision in a 10-round one-sided fight at Red Room Arena at Yaya Centre, in Nairobi on November 4.

It came after the female professional super lightweight champion had missed several opportunities to defend her title owing to lack of sponsors and other factors, which saw her come to terms with the reality of being stripped off the title, six months after winning it.

WBF rules require a title holder to defend it in six months after victory for one to continue holding onto the belt, if not, he/she could be stripped off the belt and the position declared vacant.

Achieng' won the title on June 2023 against Edith Soledad Matthysse of Argentina at Charter Hall, Nairobi after surpassing the duration time by two and half years.

Achieng' said the main problem was to secure a potential sponsor, which eventually came to pass.

"It took us a lot of time to secure a potential sponsor, but I'm happy that at last, we had the last laugh, which allowed the fight to continue," she said.

However, her head coach Alfred 'Priest' Analo clarified that despite lacking sponsorship for a long time, it was equally hard for the boxer to compete as faced countless health issues.

"Definitely, one cannot box when they are unwell, whether the fight was sponsored or not. These are some of the factors that forced the WBF champion not to honour similar matches when they had been fixed but we are happy WBF understood our case," Analo told Standard Sports.

And when she took to the ring last month, Achieng' who's fondly referred to as 'The Angel of War' by her fans, was still not feeling well but decided to take the bull by the horns and successfully defended the title.

"Nilikuwa na homa kidogo lakini hali hii haingeweza kunizuia kuendelea na pigano hilo (Although I had a slight common cold, that could not stop me from getting on with the fight," she said.

As Achieng' did this, there were many non-title fights mainly in Nairobi where boxers won and lost in equal measure.

Former World Boxing Council super bantamweight champion Fatuma Zarika had a non-title fight against Halima Ragati in the super featherweight in Nairobi, which the former won on unanimous points' decision last month.

"This was just a training session match that was to keep me abreast in checking my fitness levels as I prepare for a title fight early next year," said the 35-year-old boxer who's still ambitious to win back the WBC world super bantamweight title she lost to Yamileth Mercado of Mexico on November 16, 2019 in Chihuahua in Mexico.

"I'm still capable of winning back the title and focus more on getting ready for future bouts. I'm still training with my coaches," she told Standard Sports.

Former African Boxing Union super middleweight champion Rayton Okwiri also had a non-title fight against Mohamud Sebyala of Uganda at Mass House Arena in Nairobi on November 22.

Okwiri knocked out his opponent in the third round of the bout. During the year, there were many professional matches for upcoming boxers.