They’ve been invited by Gulu City and East Coast Boxing Club for an international tournament on July 19, 2025
For the first time since formation in 2000, Kayole Rapid Boxing Club will fight at an international tournament outside Kenya.
The international match takes place in Gulu city on Saturday, July 19, 2025, featuring Kayole Rapid, East Coast Boxing Club and two boxers from Somalia.
“We’re still on the road now past Busia border going to Uganda,” said a jovial owner of Kayole Rapid Kenneth “Valdez” Ochieng, a former star international boxer and the once famous Undugu Boxing Club.
They will arrive in Kampala in the evening of July 17, spend a night in Uganda’s capital city and then leave on Friday, July 18, for Gulu town located in northwestern Uganda, about 333 kilometres by road north of Kampala at an elevation of about 3,600 feet (1,100 metres).
In addition to Valdez, the other founder member of Kayole Rapid is the current chairman of Kenya Professional Boxing Commission Reuben Ndolo. US-based Shaaban Ogolla, a former Undugu boxer, was the first coach.
“The boys are so excited travelling outside Kenya for the first time, we’re going to Gulu not just to perform but display quality boxing,” Valdez told boxersworld.co.ke in an interview while in the Metro Bus transporting them to Uganda.
“I’m also making arrangements for them to tour Denmark because we at Kayole Rapid believe in exposing our boxers. Last year (2024) we traveled to Mombasa for a friendly match against Havana Boxing Club.”
Kayole Rapid captain, bantamweight Michael Ndonga, is however not in the team after being denied permission to travel to Uganda by his employer Kenya Power and Lighting Company.
Assistant team manager Mohammed Abubakar aka Kakabraza said 12 boxers and five officials comprise the team travelling to Uganda.
Other officials accompanying the team are 1987 African Games light-flyweight champion Maurice “Kawata” Maina who is the Nairobi County Competition Secretary, team manager Fred Ceasar and assistant coach Charles Juma.
The only female boxer selected for the trip, international bantamweight Alice Waiyego, pulled out at the last minute. She made her international debut in the 2022 Zone 3 Championships in Kinshasa, DR Congo, bringing home a bronze medal and was voted the 2019 most promising female boxer by Boxing Federation of Kenya (BFK).
The Uganda trip is sponsored by Superloaf Company. Khalili twin boxing brothers and owners of East Coast Boxing Club, Hussein and Hassan, initiated the Uganda trip for the Kenyans.
Kayole Rapid boxers heading to Uganda:
1:Daniel Mutie Mutuku -flyweight
2: Victor Kanja-lightweight
3:Wiseman Kavondo Mwathe-light-welterweight
4: Washington Mwakilomba Righa -welterweight
5:Jona Muhwezi – light-welterweight
6:Joshua Mwendwa Vetelo-light-heavyweight
7:Elijah Kingi-cruiserweight
8:Eric Muchanga Wangari-featherweight
9:Meshack Okuku – light-middleweight
10:Mohamed Samson
11:James Tachia-bantamweight
12: Meshack Abednego-middleweight
