NAIROBI, 23 October 2026 – Uganda’s Bombers have ended an eight-year wait for gold at the African Boxing Championships, producing a remarkable four-title haul to finish third overall at the 2026 edition in Nairobi, Kenya.
The 18-member Ugandan team collected 13 medals — four gold, one silver and eight bronze — to finish third among 21 participating countries, underlining a significant resurgence for the national boxing programme.
The achievement marks Uganda’s return to the top of the continental podium for the first time since Muzamir Kakande won welterweight gold at the 2017 African Boxing Championships in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo.
David Ayiti also claimed silver in the super-heavyweight category at that championship, while Geoffrey Kakeeto secured bronze in the bantamweight division.
Nearly a decade later, Uganda’s latest generation of Bombers has delivered an even stronger gold-medal return, with Vanessa Nagawa, Samuel Nsubuga, Mulungi Kassim and Alfred Ojok leading the charge.
Nagawa, 18, was among the standout performers, claiming gold in the women’s 57kg final after the referee stopped her contest against Lesotho’s Rapelang Maselela.
Teenage bantamweight Nsubuga, 19, followed with a commanding 5–0 victory over Rwanda’s Ntabanganyimana Valentin in the 55kg final, capping an impressive campaign that had included a third-round stoppage of Algeria’s Amine Zanaz and a unanimous semi-final victory over Kenya’s Emmanuel Odhiambo.
Mulungi Kassim also struck gold after defeating Angola’s Daniel Makaya in the final, adding the continental title to an impressive domestic record that includes four consecutive Champions League crowns between 2022 and 2025.
Middleweight Alfred Ojok completed Uganda’s quartet of champions, winning the 71kg final after the referee stopped his contest against Egypt’s Omar Elawady because of a cut sustained by the Egyptian.
The injury was reviewed and determined to have resulted from Ojok’s punch.
The four gold medals represent a significant breakthrough for a team that had entered the championship seeking to translate its growing domestic and regional success into continental honours.
Uganda’s final tally of 13 medals comprised four gold, one silver and eight bronze, reflecting contributions across the men’s and women’s divisions.
Beyond the individual achievements, the third-place finish among 21 nations provides Uganda with renewed momentum as it looks to consolidate its position among Africa’s leading boxing countries.
From Kakande’s 2017 triumph in Brazzaville to the four champions crowned in Nairobi, the Bombers have finally turned a prolonged wait for continental gold into a statement performance.
