The 2026 National Individual Amateur Boxing Championship ended with the Black Panthers boxing club making a strong statement. All three of their boxers who reached the final won their bouts to claim gold medals.
Wisdom Boxing Club had five finalists in the competition but managed to win just one gold medal.
Although no official award was given for the best trainer, Coach Okoe of the Black Panthers believes his team deserves that recognition for their perfect record in the finals.
The event took place at the Bukom Boxing Arena and was attended by Nii Ashiefie Papayinra 1, also known as Ben Nunoo Mensah, former President of the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC). Also present were Hon Alfred Kotey Ashie, Mr. Ernest Danso who will lead Team Ghana to the Glasgow 2024 Commonwealth Games, and other GOC board members including Nana Adu Mankata and Nana Amponsah Adu-Gyamfi. Diplomats from the French and Spanish embassies, as well as members of the Chinese business community in Ghana, also watched the fights.
Ghana Boxing Federation President Dauda Fuseni praised the young boxers for their performances. He encouraged them to stay focused as they prepare for bigger challenges when they join the national team.
Action in the Ring
The night started with the Super Heavyweight (92+kg) final. Seventeen-year-old Isaac Asiedu of C.Q.B.F defeated experienced boxer Daniel Plange from Jamestown Boxing Club to grab gold. Asiedu, whose family came to watch him, said qualifying for the Black Bombers national team is a big deal and that training with them will be a great experience.
The main event of the evening was the Light Flyweight (48kg) contest. Daniel Amoo of Sea View, nicknamed “Small Boy Danger,” shocked Samuel Plange. Amoo got the chance to fight after replacing Lionel Owoo of Wisdom Boxing Gym.
The biggest surprise came in the Flyweight (51kg) division. George Dowuona of Will Power, a member of the national youth team, lost to Ibrahim “Boosu” Doku of the Black Panthers.
In the Welterweight (67kg) class, Issah Okine of Wisdom Boxing Gym could not keep his promise to do better than his father. He lost to Precious Akai Nettey of Attoh Quarshie Boxing Gym, who celebrated his birthday in style with his fans.
Other results saw Solomon Sackey (Akotoku) beat Zakari Kamoko (Sea View) in the Light Middleweight (71kg) division. In the Middleweight (75kg) class, Khalid of Fit Square lost to Desmond Pappoe of Jamestown Boxing Club.
Mubarak Amarh of Seconds Out kept his promise by beating Abdul Wahab of Sonia in the Light Heavyweight (81kg) category. Dennis John Dugbenu, also of Seconds Out, beat Bernard Kotey of Sea View in an action-packed Cruiserweight (86kg) bout.
The Light Welterweight (63.5kg) final was an all-Wisdom affair. Experienced boxer Abdul Wahid Omar defeated his clubmate Henry Owusu to take the gold.