▪️African boxers and others elsewhere have gone through pain, a feeling of discrimination and discomfort with the reduction of weight classes to seven at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games
August 21, 2026
Boxing gyms of Africa are alive with a roar of pure, unfiltered joy as boxers across the continent prepare for an all-inclusive IBA African Elite Men’s and Women’s Boxing Championships in Kinshasa from October 18-31, 2026.
The atmosphere in training camps from Nairobi to Dakar to Yaounde is electric. Boxers are sweating, sparring, and smiling because nobody is being left behind. The Kinshasa bonanza will feature all the 25 standard weight classes: 12 for women and 13 for men.
Men’s weight classes (13 divisions)
Minimumweight: 46–48 kg
Flyweight: 51 kg
Bantamweight: 54 kg
Featherweight: 57 kg
Lightweight: 60 kg
Light-welterweight: 63.5kg
Welterweight: 67 kg
Light-middleweight: 71 kg
Middleweight: 75 kg
Light-heavyweight: 80 kg
Cruiserweight: 86 kg
Heavyweight: 92 kg
Super-heavyweight:+92 kg
Women’s weight classes (12 Divisions)
Minimumweight: 45–48 kg
Light-flyweight: 50 kg
Flyweight: 52 kg
Bantamweight: 54 kg
Featherweight: 57 kg
Lightweight: 60 kg
Light-welterweight: 63 kg
Welterweight: 66 kg
Light-middleweight: 70 kg
Middleweight: 75 kg
Light Heavyweight: 81 kg
Heavyweight: +81 kg
There’s been anger and hopelessness among some boxers who felt left out when the IOC decided to slice boxing down to the bone. At the Commonwealth Games only seven weight classes each were allowed for men and women.
The objective of the seven weight classes, according to the organisers, was to achieve gender parity for the first time. This gender parity is interesting when other boxers are left out.
Here’s the seven weight classes:
Men’s weight classes
55 kg
60 kg
65 kg
70 kg
80 kg
90 kg
Over 90 kg (90+ kg)
Women’s weight classes
51 kg
54 kg
57 kg
60 kg
65 kg
70 kg
75 kg
This restriction acted like a closed door for some boxers. In total – going by the standard weight categories of 25 – six men’s weight categories and five women’s weight categories were completely shut out from Commonwealth Games. For the 2028 LA Olympics Games, Africa has been allocated 14 slots only in the continental qualifiers. Surely, a continent with 54 countries getting only 14 slots doesn’t make sense. This is total mutilation of boxing in the Olympics and Commonwealth Games.
Ring analysts and boxing pundits have roundly condemned the reduction of weight categories. They call it pure discrimination against fighters who do not fit into those specific, narrow weight brackets. Imagine training for years, only to be told your weight simply does not exist anymore. That was the harsh reality forcing many champions to watch from the sidelines while others risked their health by slashing several kilograms to fit in the selected weight classes and others moving up to new weights. The 2028 LA Olympics will also feature seven weight divisions.
The last time boxers enjoyed the absolute freedom was at the 2025 IBA Men’s World Boxing Championships in Dubai. The IBA’s 25-weight classes is the preferred choice of boxers worldwide because it gives each one of them a chance to fight in their preferred weight categories without slashing or adding in weight which make them uncomfortable in the ring. In doing so, the IBA is giving fighters their livelihoods and freedom of choice.
Boxers who were previously told they were “too light” or “caught in the middle” are now looking ahead to the Africa Elite Championships. Kinshasa is not just hosting a tournament; it is hosting a celebration of boxing survival and equality.
The heavy bags are swinging, the timers are buzzing, and Africa’s finest are ready to prove that true boxing belongs to every fighter—no matter what the scale says.
Boxers have helplessly watched their beloved sport get defaced and fellow fighters face discrimination following the reduction of weight categories. Now African boxers are ready to reclaim their pride. They are bracing for a massive, all-inclusive showdown at the Stade de Martyrs Gym in Kinshasa. For many, this tournament feels like a liberation.
By creating dedicated regional hubs like IBA Africa, IBA Asia, and IBA Europe, the organization has built a solid base where every single boxer gets a fair shot to display their true potential.
A massive 25-weight bonanza is the moment the fighters have been eagerly awaiting. No one is left behind. No one is excluded. No one is discriminated. From the minimumweights to the super-heavyweights, every boxer who has put in the miles and the blood now has a clear path to glory.
The upcoming Kinshasa bonanza is also a celebration of equal opportunity. Gyms across the continent are buzzing with renewed energy because the boxers know the playing field is level once again. Freedom has come back to the ring, and Africa’s warriors are ready to show the world exactly what stuff they are made of in a tournament which is also being used to revamp the African unity in this combat sport.
One Africa, One Ring.
