Olympic-bound Kenyan featherweight boxer Nick Okoth has touted the faith his wife had in him as the biggest inspiration in his successful quest to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic games.
Okoth, who is approaching his 37th birthday, said his wife is his biggest fan and pre-match conversation with her were instrumental in him getting the convincing win over Ugandan Isaac Masembe.
“My wife is my biggest fan. She believes I am the best. Before the fight, my wife told me the ticket is mine to lose as she was more worried about my previous opponent in the quarter-finals,” remarked the Hit Squad captain in his post-fight comments.
The 2008 Beijing Olympian added: “On the contrary, I think the fight against the guy from Angola (Gomes Pedro Manuel) was tougher and I was pretty confident that I would easily overcome the Ugandan (Masembe).”
Okoth revealed that his boss at work (Kenya Defence Forces) a Col. Njuguna, had sent him video links of Masembe’s previous fights to analyse with his coaches but he chose otherwise.
“I knew if I analysed the video with my coaches—Munuhe (David) and Musa (Benjamin)— they will both have different opinions on how I should approach the bout. I, therefore, opted to do it my way because in the end, I would be alone in the ring with him and I am glad it worked well in the end,” the Mathare based slugger explained.
Okoth, who is now the sole Kenyan boxer to have booked a direct ticket to Tokyo—a measly return after very good preparations and taking a full contingent of 13 boxers—advised his compatriots who fell by the wayside and future contenders that everyone must push themself harder and further in order to achieve their goals.
“Boxing is an individual sport. You have to have the passion, the will and drive to push yourself to the limit. Just turning up for training like a routine will not take you far,” said the KDF boxer.
“You must be willing to take up styles and techniques of others who execute them better than you do and adopt them into your game,” he said.
With a ticket already in hand, Okoth now hopes to finish the qualifiers on a high when he takes on Zambian Everisto Mulenga in the featherweight finals.
Female flyweight pugilist Christine Ongare, meanwhile, has another chance to redeem her hopes of qualifying for her first-ever Olympic Games when she engages in a ‘box off’ against Ugandan Catherine Nanziri tomorrow.
Both the East African boxers lost in their semi-final bouts and will now fight it out for the bronze medal berth that guarantees a slot in the 2020 Tokyo games in the weight category.
