BOXERS’ MISSED CHANCES: For the first time, Kenyans fall short of glory at Olympic Games

Mohammed Rabii,Rayton Nduku Okwiri Morocco's Mohammed Rabii, left, fights Kenya's Rayton Nduku Okwiri during a men's welterweight 69-kg preliminary boxing match at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday, Aug. 11, 2016.

Having shone in past Olympic Games and other world championships, Kenyan boxers failed to win a medal during this year’s Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, in August.

Boxing Association of Kenya (BAK) sent three boxers to the Rio games and none of them qualified for the medal brackets.

The trio that flew to the South American country was light flyweight Peter Mungai Warui, bantamweight Benson Njangiru Gicharu (both of Kenya Police) and welterweight Rayton Okwiri of Kenya Prisons.

Of the three boxers, it was only Mungai, who came close to the medal brackets, when he lost in the quarterfinals to Joahny Argilagos of Cuba.

The Cuban won 90-80 (30-27, 30-27 and 30-26). Earlier, Mungai defeated Chinese Lyu Bin in split-point decision in a pre-quarterfinal match after he received a bye in the first round.

Interestingly, Mungai qualified for the Summer games after South African light flyweight champion Bandla Sibusiso withdrew from the games.

Okwiri qualified after he won gold in the African Olympic Qualifiers in Younde, Cameroon in March, while Gicharu clinched his ticket at the inaugural World Professional Boxing Championships in Vargas, Venezuela in July, where he also won a gold medal. At the Olympics, Gicharu lost in the first round to Erdenebat Tsendbaatar of Mongolia, while Okwiri was eliminated in the second round by Russian Andrei Zaamkovoi. 

Their dismal performances had been preceded by shambolic preparations by the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) that saw them fail to get full training kits. 

Kenya has in the past emerged as a global powerhouse, whose performance speaks volumes in Olympics and international championships. Qualifying for the medal brackets was a normal ritual for Kenyan boxers. The most successful performance by Kenyans in Olympics was during the 1988 Seoul Games when the late Robert Napunyi Wangila became the first African boxer to win gold medal after he knocked out Frenchman Laurent Boudani in the welterweight fight.

Earlier in the 1972 Munich Olympics, Phillip Waruinge won silver in welterweight. The worst the Kenyan boxers had won at these games was a bronze medal. How things change fast! In the local scene, Kenya Police were declared National Boxing League champions as they withstood great opposition from Kenya Defence Forces.

The soldiers led for most of the season, but it was the policemen, who had the last laugh, winning the last two legs of the championship.

Police retained the title with 97 points ahead of KDF, who had 77. Kenya Prisons  had 45, Omar Kassongo Sports Academy (24), Coast Combined (20), Ken Track (16), Thika United (13), Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) nine, Dallas Muthurwa nine, Kisumu Combined eight, Kibra five, Githurai 44 four, Nairobi Metropolitan three, Ndenderu one and hosts Nakuru ABC one point.

Police pocketed cash prize of Sh250,000.

The champions produced six out of 10 Most Outstanding and Consistent Players of the season.

They are; Shaffi Bakari(Light fly), Maurice Ochieng (Fly), Martin Oduor (Bantam), Ethan Maina (Light), Joseph Shigali (Light welter) and Elly Ajowi (Light heavyweight).