The stage is set for an exciting climax to the National Individual Amateur Boxing Championship, and all eyes will be on the Wisdom Boxing Gym. With six boxers qualifying for the finals on February 27, the famous Accra-based boxing gym is determined to bring home majority of the gold medals.
Wisdom Boxing Gym, a well-known institution founded in 1993 by Coach Dr. Ofori Asare in Jamestown, has a long history of developing top talent. The gym has produced over 500 boxers and has been a key part of the community. Its reputation for excellence was highlighted when Samuel Takyi, trained by Coach Asare, won a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
The gym has also sent boxers like Abdul Wahid Omar to the 2016 Olympics in Brazil.
Currently, the gym is home to over 70 active boxers, including juveniles, females, and professionals. Among their stars are WBO Africa Bantamweight Champion Theophilus Kpakpo Allotey, Haruna Mohammed, and other top names like Bastie Samir, Clinton Adjei, and Joseph Antwi. The club is managed by Sarah Lotus Asare, daughter of the founder, who is also a member of the new Ghana Boxing Federation (GBF).
Ahead of the finals, assistant coach Emmanuel Adjei expressed strong confidence in his team. “We train like champions, we have the mindset of champions and we aim high to achieve greatness,” he said. He promised that there would be surprises, with his boxers ready to cause an upset to secure the titles.
Wisdom leads all gyms with six finalists. They are followed by Sea View with four, Black Panthers with three, and Charles Quartey Foundation and Jamestown with two each. Other gyms like Sonia, Fit Square, Will Power, Akotoku, and Attoh Quarshie each have one representative in the finals.
The stage is set for an all-Wisdom showdown in one weight class, guaranteeing a gold and silver for the gym. The full list of final bouts is as follows:
48 kg: Daniel Amoo (Sea View) vs Lionel Owoo (Wisdom)
51 kg: George Dowuona (Will Power) vs Ibrahim Doku (Black Panthers)
54 kg: Caleb Mensah (Wisdom) vs Mathias Ashitey (Black Panthers)
57 kg: Mohammed Amadu (Sea View) vs Reginald Lamptey (Charles Quartey)
60 kg: James Okoe (Wisdom) vs Ebenezer Ankrah (Black Panthers)
63.5 kg: Henry Owusu (Wisdom) vs Abdul Wahid Omar (Wisdom)
67kg: Precious Akai Nettey (Attoh Quarshie) vs Issah Okine (Wisdom)
71 kg: Solomon Sackey (Akotoku) vs Zakaria Kamoko (Sea View)
75 kg: Khalim A. Yakeem (Fit Square) vs Desmond Pappoe (James Town)
81 kg: Mubarak Armah (Seconds Out) vs Abdul Wahab (Sonia)
86 kg: Dennis John Dogbenu (Seconds Out) vs Bernard Kotey (Sea View)
92+ kg: Isaac Seidu (Charles Quartey) vs Daniel Plange (James Town)
With six of its boxers ready for battle, Wisdom Boxing Club is on a mission to prove its strength and add more championship titles to its storied history.