Kenyan boxer makes history in Russia

Kenyan boxer makes history in Russia

JOHANNESBURG, May 14 (ANA) – Kenyan Boxer Nick Okoth on Thursday became the first African fighter to win a bout in Russia, at the Konstantin Korotkov Memorial International Boxing Championships at Lenina Regional Sports Complex Stadium in the city of Khabarovsk.

The 38-year-old amateur beat Ukranian Kishko Sergei in a points decision to advance to the semi-finals of the competition.

All five Russian judges Radnaev Baryato, Rymyacencev Semen, Liskyn Andrey, Moiseev Oleg, Shevchenko Aleksey and Shalimov Uriy scored the fight in Okoth’s favour to make it a 5-0 decision.

Okoth told Kenyan publication The Standard Sports: “It was a good but difficult match, which I easily won. My opponent was good and applied too much force but I defended myself well following instructions from my coaches who kept shouting them at the touchline.”

Last year, Okoth qualified for the Tokyo Olympics just before Covid-19 was declared a pandemic.

Okoth: “When we came back from Senegal, we got to the airport and people were being screened. One of my peers went first and we started laughing, we didn’t know what was going on.

“When I got home about two days later, I heard the games in Europe had been cancelled due to Covid. At the time I kept wondering what this Covid was. But I came to understand it well, and I just thank god for letting me qualify.”

Okoth’s full time occupation is with the Kenyan military, which has given the boxer extra time off in order to train for the Olympics. – African News Agency (ANA), Editing by Michael Sherman