Olympian Keevin Allicock will be the first Guyanese boxer to step into the ring at the Commonwealth Games when he squares off with Kenya’s Okoth Nicholas Okongo in round-of-32 bantamweight action today, at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham. Fight time is 2:15pm (GT time).
The last time Guyana won a boxing medal at the former British Empire Games, was at the 1990 event in Auckland, New Zealand, when Wesley Christmas claimed bronze in the bantamweight division.
In fact, of the 16 medals won by Guyana since the 1930 Commonwealth Games, 11 are split between track and field and boxing.
The country’s other medals at the games came from rowing (bronze – 1930), swimming (bronze – 1938) and weightlifting (bronze – 1954, 1962 and silver – 1966).
Meanwhile, junior welterweight, Colin Lewis, is down to compete tomorrow against Colin Louis Richamo from Mauritius. Desmond Amsterdam, will be making his Commonwealth Games debut against New Zealand’s Richardson Emile also tomorrow.
Both Lewis and Amsterdam received byes to the round-of-16 of their respective categories.
Winfield Braithwaite’s 1978 top-of-the-podium finish in the men’s junior welterweight division was the last time Guyana won a gold medal in boxing at the Commonwealth Games.
