Ghana’s female amateur middleweight contender DR ORNELLA SATHOUD won Gold at the 2023 USA National Women’s Boxing Championship.
The New York based PhD holder in analytical Chemistry,eliminated San Francisco’s based 2019 Australia National Champion Caitlin Torrington in the semi-finals of the middleweight (75 kg) before defeating Pennsylvania’s Paris 2024 bound TRINITY BURKE for the gold medal.She had earlier dealt with former Canada national champion Kaitlyn Clark.
Miss SATHOUD, who represented Ghana at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, had less than 20 bouts during her career but she made it brilliantly in the first round of the final. Burke came back from the deep in the second with tough punches, but the Ghanaian had the stamina in the third to win this crucial final.
She had the man with 30 years coaching experience JERRICK JONES in her corner and may join her to the September,2023 Africa Olympic Boxing Qualifiers in Dakar-Senegal, where Ornella will in her 2nd attempt try to make history as Ghana’s 1st ever female to qualify for the Olympic games.
Other women to join at the Dakar qualifiers,may include, Janet Acquah (Flyweight),Ramatu Quaye(Bantamweight),Anatu Mohammed(Featherweight, Sarah Apew (Lightweight), Perpetual Okaijah(Welterweight) & Trudy Manteaw(Light Heavyweight) among others.
Boxing remains Ghana’s most successful sporting discipline at the Olympic games winning 4 of the 5 medals with the recent being Samuel Takyi bronze winning feat in Tokyo 2020 Olympic games.
Credit: GBF MEDIA