HOW EGYPT AND GHANA RULED 2ND AFRICAN BOXING CHAMPIONSHIPS
▪️Kenya, Uganda win first gold medals with the latter topping their East African rival
▪️Nigeria claim third position through Karimu Young’s gold medal
September 28, 2026
Egypt and Ghana maintained their grip on African boxing at the 2nd 1964 Africa Boxing Championships in Accra.
By retaining the top spot, Egypt (then the United Arab Republic) claimed the President Nasser Cup for the second consecutive time. They edged out hosts Ghana with a tally of three gold, three silver, and three bronze medals. Ghana followed closely with three gold, two silver, and three bronze medals. As a result of their identical gold counts, both nations shared the prestigious Nkrumah Shield.
Due to poor historical record-keeping, details from this era remain scarce, but the gold medalists have been identified:
Egypt’s Gold: Mahmoud Hamza (Flyweight), Fawzi Hassan Suleiman (Lightweight), and Hussein Saddik (Welterweight).
Ghana’s Gold: Eddie Blay (Light-welterweight), Eddie Davies (Light-middleweight), and Joe Darkey (Middleweight).
In the light-welterweight final, Blay retained his crown by outpointing Kenya’s stubborn John Olulu.
Nigeria secured third place overall with one gold, two silver and three bronze medals. Bantamweight Karimu Young captured Nigeria’s lone gold by defeating Ghana’s Amos Ajao in the final. The other gold of the tournament went to Benin’s light-heavyweight Expedit Montcho who defeated Egypt’s Sayed Mersal.
At the time, competition was limited to 10 weight classes. The light-flyweight division would not debut until the 1968 tournament in Lusaka.
East Africa also made a historic impact, winning its first-ever gold medals.
Philip Waruinge (Kenya): The featherweight outpointed Egypt’s Bedawi el Bedawi to take gold. Remarkably, Waruinge fought using only his left arm after injuring his right. His skillful boxing earned him a standing ovation and an offer from Nigeria’s former world champion Hogan “Kid” Bassey to turn professional. Waruinge trained under Maxie McCullough at Nakuru ABC, while his teammates Olulu and Mwangi Mugo trained under Freddie Webb at Pumwani.
Uganda’s George Oywello: The 1962 Commonwealth Games champion stopped defending heavyweight title holder Tewfi Mazher of Egypt in the second round.
In the regional rivalry, Uganda upstaged Kenya by sending a 10-man squad compared to Kenya’s three. Uganda finished with one gold, two silvers (light-middleweight Domisiano Ochodomuge and middleweight Peter Odhiambo), and three bronzes (flyweight Busonya, welterweight Ernest Powell Mabwa, and light-heavyweight Henry Mugwanya).
Kenya’s third boxer, Mwangi Mugo, fell early to Uganda’s Mabwa, leaving them with Waruinge’s gold and Olulu’s silver.
Compiled by John Nene, Chief Editor, boxersworld.co.ke