Five Nigerian Boxers Reach Finals of African Championships

Five Nigerian boxers have made it to the finals of the African Elite Men’s and Women’s Boxing Championships in Nairobi, Kenya. This keeps Nigeria's hopes alive for winning several gold medals.

The finalists are Ridwan Raheem, Ajishola Khadijat, Precious Anine, Blessing Orakwe, and Patricia Mbata. Their success marks a turnaround for Nigeria’s 10-member team, which lost five matches early in the tournament.

Sunday was a tough day for the team. Aishat Gbadamosi, Abdulramon Abdulwahab, Emmanuel Chuwuka, and Kenneth Anigboro all lost to fighters from Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, and Uganda.

Some of the decisions upset fans and raised concerns about how the matches were judged.

Raheem started the comeback on Monday by defeating Algeria’s Ismail Bekhsis in the men’s 60-65kg category. Before the fight, he promised to win clearly to avoid any “kind of controversial decision.”

On Tuesday, Khadijat won against Kenya’s Amina Martha with a score of 5-0 in Bout 41 of the women’s 51-54kg category. Fighting from the blue corner, she impressed all five judges.

Anine followed suit with a 5-0 victory over Egypt’s Ayyad Yomna in Bout 45 of the women’s 60-65kg semi-final. Orakwe then stopped Uganda’s Aiwine Diana in the first round during Bout 47 of the women’s 75-80kg category.

Mbata had already secured her place in the finals.

The Nigeria Boxing Federation board member and Head of Delegation, Capt. Rasulun Kashim, had previously shown confidence in the boxers’ talent and determination to compete with their rivals on the continent.

Now, the attention turns to turning these five final spots into gold medals.