NENEZ BOXING ARCHIVE: One of Kenya’s most decorated boxer , Steve Muchoki, recounts his participation in the inaugural World Championships in 1974 in Havana, Cuba.
At 17 years of age and barely one-year-old in Kenya’s national boxing team, Steve Muchoki was among the five boxers picked to represent the East African country in the inaugural World Boxing Championships in Havana, Cuba, from August 17-30 in 1974.
Others selected were African Games bantamweight silver medallist Isaac Maina, African Games gold medallist, light-welterweight George Oduori, top regional light-middleweight David Attan and African Games middleweight champion Peter Dula.
Muchoki was surprised when the Amateur Boxing Association of Kenya (ABA) decided he was the one to don the national vest in the light-flyweight division.
“l was very surprised to be selected for such a big tournament because by then we had more experienced boxers in my weight such as Lawrence Kariuki of Prisons and Peter Kangethe of Police,” recalls Muchoki, adding: “At the same time I was happy, it showed the selectors believed in me.”
The ABA had every reason to believe in Muchoki following his shocking but deserved points victory over Uganda’s highly regarded and more experienced defending champion James Odwori in the finals of the Commonwealth Games in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 1974.
Muchoki’s astounding achievement in Christchurch was more captivating taking into account he had no international exposure but he silenced Odwori, a Kenyan boxing for Uganda. His father was working for the defunct East African Railways, but he was transferred to Uganda in the 1960s while Odwori was still a toddler growing up in Makongeni Railways Quarters in Nairobi. The boxer won gold at the 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Prior to gaining selection in Kenya’s team for the Christchurch Commonwealth Games, Muchoki defeated big names in the trials among them Prisons’ Lawrence Kariuki, a silver medalist at the 1968 Africa Championships in Lusaka, Zambia.
Muchoki had made his international debut for the national team in November, 1973, outpointing Uganda’s Baker Muwanga during the second leg of the Urafiki Cup between Kenya and Uganda at Nairobi’s City Hall.
After his triumph in Christchurch, Muchoki won another gold medal in the FESCAABA Championships in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. This was a popular tournament then featuring East, Southern and Central African countries.
With two gold medals under his belt, the ABA of Kenya was convinced the talented secondary school student was up to the task in Havana.
Muchoki elaborates his training programme ahead of the Havana trip, and explains why he was happy. Earlier the selected coach Hasaan Amiri had been replaced by trainer Charles Anjimbi. Amiri pulled out owing to pressure of work at the Kenya Army.
“To me the late Hassan Amiri was a good coach but too harsh, forcing boxers to do what he thought was good to him but boxers didn’t like his coaching approach,” says Muchoki
“l was elated because l was now free to train the way l want with no pressure. Anjimbi was my first coach at Railways Starehe Boxing Club. He knew me well and how I train. The team manager-cum-doctor Major Momanyi made arrangements for us to be training at Prisons Staff Training College and sleeping at Langata Barracks.
“l can recall my training mates were lsaac Maina, George Findo, Philip Mathenge and Peter Dula. All of them were my seniors in the national team.” George Oduori and David Attan, were both selected for the Havana tournament. They were then based in Germany and decided to prepare there and link up with their compatriots in Havana but owing to travel complications they didn’t make it to Cuba.
Muchoki, probably relying on his sixth sense, was not comfortable doing sparring at Prisons Gym.
“I had to plan my training cautiously the moment l learned that we would be based in Langata Barracks and training at Prisons. l knew some boxers were not happy for my selection, and they might use dirty tricks during the sparring sessions to make sure I don’t go to Havana. Therefore, I decided to go for sparring at my club in Muthurwa Estate which we nicknamed Dallas. At Prisons anything could have happened to put me out of the Kenya team.
“My training was in the morning I would run from Langata Barracks to Nyayo Stadium roundabout and then to Prisons for the first training session. I then ran back to Langata Barracks after the training and in the evening I would do more road work and sparring with boxers I was familiar with in Dallas and back to the Barracks.”
Finally the Kenya team left for Havana to participate in the inaugural World Boxing Championships.
“On arrival in Havana things were okay from accommodation to the food and the friendly atmosphere, I met with my buddy with Tanzania’s boxing team Emmanuel Mlundwa, I enjoyed myself a lot there.”
Muchoki was wary of meeting a Cuban boxer in his first fight.
“Deep in my heart l was just thinking if l meet a Cuban in my first fight what would I do? Because they were the best boxers in the world by then but to me it was a big challenge. I also wanted to beat the big powers in boxing who were by then Cuba, USA and the Soviet Union.”
Muchoki first beat Jose Ibiri of Argentina, saw off Romania’s Cosma Remus in the quarter-finals and outpointed Eugeniy Yudin of the Soviet Union in the semi-finals.
Pitted against Cuba’s Jorge Hernandez in the finals, Muchoki lost on points but when he returned home coach Charles Anjimbi claimed he was robbed of victory against the Cuban. Muchoki, was also not satisfied with the result.
Says Muchoki on the officiating in Havana: “Infact it was not only my fight that I felt robbed. There was biased officiating in some fights resulting in some judges being beaten in the lift for their biased officiating, we just don’t know where the assailants came from. This forced the organisers to assign security to the judges.”
Muchoki singles out the Argentine boxer, Jose Ibiri, as the toughest of all the opponents he fought in Havana.
“I can recall the boxer from Argentina was very aggressive but not tactical like the Cuban. This boxer was just coming forward so l had to sidestep every now and then to avoid his heavy punches. Mostly I was taking advice from my fellow boxers Isaac Maina and Peter Dula because they were near my corner.
“The Cuban was taller than me and he had long range jabs. I opted for in-fighting by keeping him close so that he couldn’t take advantage of his long reach, l was smart at in-fighting and combinations.”
So what did he gain by winning Kenya’s first ever medal in the World Championships?
“I got nothing from our government just the usual congratulations,” says Muchoki but he’s not bitter at not being rewarded like some countries do for their sportsmen and women.
“It was not a must for the government to reward me, that’s their choice if they felt it was a big achievement. I have learnt to live with our African leaders who don’t bother much about our achievements, they’re more interested in enriching themselves.”
Muchoki is very impressed by IBA’s President Umar Kremlev’s recognition of the boxers’ performance in the ring by introducing prize money.
“Kremlev has shown he cares for the welfare of the boxers, God bless him,” says Muchoki appealing to Kremlev to honour the medalists in Havana.
Muchoki, who went on to win a gold medal and Best Boxer Award in the 1978 World Championships, is grateful to the chairman of the Kenyan federation at the time, Major Marsden Madoka, for employing him at Kenya Breweries which was one of the leading Kenyan clubs with cream boxers. Madoka was then a highly placed senior employee at Breweries and brought on board several international boxers.
“I just don’t know where I would be without Madoka’s support. The Army and Police wanted me but I was not keen to join the forces.”
Muchoki says with the current economic situation in Kenya, life is not a bed of roses but he’s surviving aided by the boxing philosophy he learnt as a boxer.
“Life is not easy now, I’m struggling for a living by coaching a club to put food on the table,” says the humble Muchoki, a devoted Catholic who was an altar boy during his youth.
Photos courtesy
