🥊 NENEZ BOXING ARCHIVE
Dominant Kenyan boxers rock the world in the 1978 successful season
The Mighty Kenyan boxers, enjoying top form with depth in the national team, ruled the world in their highly successful 1978 season.
Celebrated light-flyweight Steve “Destimo” Muchoki won Kenya’s first ever gold medal – and the only gold so far – in the World Championships in Belgrade.
As if that was not enough, Muchoki not only won his second consecutive gold medal in the Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada, but guided Kenya to a resounding overall victory. Kenya won two gold medals through Muchoki and his younger brother, flyweight Mike “Stone’ Irungu, two silvers from lightweight Patrick “Mont” Waweru and light-middleweight Abdulrahman “Assu” Athumani while bantamweight Douglas Maina, light-welter Mike Mwangi and light-heavyweight Edward Thande settled for bronze medals.
That was not all. At the African Games in Algiers, Algeria, there was no stopping the mighty Kenyan boxers as they captured the overall title with two gold, four silver and two bronze medals and won overall Fescaaba title in Dar es Salaam.
In Algiers, Ghana, Zambia and Nigeria also won two gold medals but Kenya won more silver and bronze medals than the three countries. Uganda settled for one gold and two bronze medals with Tanzania winning one silver and a bronze.
To cap it all, Kenya, with depth in almost all divisions, split into two national teams and made successful trips to the Scandinavian countries and Germany, maintaining their status as one of the world’s boxing super powers.
Indeed that was the Golden Era in Kenya and Africa boxing as a whole with Ghana’s Nelson Azumah, dubbed the smiling and dancing boxer, winning double gold medals in Algiers and Edmonton. His victory over Zambia’s John Sichula in the finals of the Commonwealth Games was treated with a pinch of salt by the Zambians who felt their boxer had done enough spadework to win gold.
With the African and Commonwealth Games over, focus turned to the Kenya Open at Nakuru’s famous Madison Square Garden. It was one of the best ever Open tournaments in Kenya’s boxing history.
Most of the medallists in Algiers and Edmonton were in Nakuru. Missing in action were Patrick “Mont” Waweru, Philip “Machine Gun” Mathenge, Douglas Maina and Joseph Kabegi.
The highly competitive nature of Kenya boxing then was evident during the opening bouts when African Games featherweight silver medallist Napunyi Oduori lost to George “Mosquito” Findo and Commonwealth Games light-welterweight bronze medallist Mike Mwangi was beaten by Ali “Ojukwu” Athumani who went on to lose to Joseph Bobby Ouma in the semis at lightweight.
Boos and catcalls from angry fans greeted Commonwealth Games flyweight gold medallist Mike Irungu’s points victory over Nakuru’s Kiama Mwang. Irate fans felt Mwangi was a clear-cut points winner. Irungu lost in the finals to Sammy “Kigos” Mwangi of KDF while his brother Steve Muchoki maintained his status as world champion and double Commonwealth Games gold medallist by stopping Peter Kangethe in the third round in the finals. So dominant was Muchoki that since making his international debut in 1973, he never lost to a fellow Kenyan boxer until he quit the sport.
Infact Muchoki says from the time he started boxing in 1969 at Muthurwa nicknamed Dallas, he only lost once to a fellow Kenyan boxer, Daniel “Nytil” Njoroge of the famed Bangladesh Boxing Club in Kariobangi under Eddie “Papa” Musi.
“It must have been 1969 or 1970 I was not even prepared because I was studying for my CPE exams, recalls Muchoki, “It was a special contest, Daniel Njoroge was to meet James Njoroge of YMCA but he was overweight so our Dallas coach Charles Anjimbi told me to step in.”
African Games gold medallists, Kamau “Pipino” Wanyoike and middleweight Stephen “Black Bomber” Moi, won their fights in the Nakuru Kenya Open finals with Wanyoike outpointing William Nandwa of Police at light-welter and Moi stopped David “Bottoms Up” Makumba in round one at middleweight. Commonwealth Games light-heavyweight bronze medallist Edward Thande was KO’d by punching machine Ojow Mamba in the first round.
Such was the depth and unpredictability of Kenya boxing at the time that no boxer could rest on his laurels because each new season promising pugilists sprang up. Even some trials ended in controversy with several top boxers crying foul. One such example is the selection of Kenya’s teams for the 1978 African and Commonwealth Games when David Attan and George Findo bitterly complained on being dropped by American coach Sarge Johnson.
Parents too joined the fray. One of Kenya’s pioneer boxers in the 1950s, Owiso Oure Katibi expressed his displeasure on why his sons Charles Owiso and Saulo Owiso were left out of the Kenya team despite doing well during the trials held at Desai Memorial Hall.
At times the selectors were spoilt for choice on who to pick and leave out of Kenya’s national team.
Photo: Courtesy Daily Nation
