Nick Okoth hungs gloves

Kenya’s celebrated amateur boxer Nick Okoth has hung up his gloves aged 39.

The renowned pugilist Okoth rose from a humble family background with limited means and was once a water vendor in Mathare slums near Moi Air Base.

He used to earn a meagre five shillings per 20 litres gallon after transporting the precious commodity to homesteads in the neighbourhood.

Nicknamed Commander in the country’s boxing landscape, the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) pugilist has left an almost flawless career which he mainly credits to his employers as well as his mentor, national team coach Musa Benjamin.

“To me, it has been a long and distinct period of boxing. I have learnt a lot in the game and I felt that it was high time that I gave budding boxers a chance to prove what is up their sleeves,” said Okoth who hails from a boxing family lineage.

He added: “It’s with a heavy heart that I announce that I have retired from boxing but then, everything has to come to an end at some point. I want to thank all those who gave me the platform to play the sport and represent Kenya at the highest level.”

Dazzling boxing skills

His siblings include Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Absalom ‘Diblo’ Okinyi, Steve Omondi and Paul ‘Polipo’ Ouma.

Additionally, Okoth’s first cousin Edwin Okongo, a Senior Private at Moi Air Base is also gifted with dazzling boxing skills and has donned national team colours on several occasions.

Talk of a man who did not have any sponsor or godfather to back him made the most of what he had and fashioned history when it really mattered.

Okoth fought at the 2008 Olympics as a featherweight after winning the second AIBA African 2008 Olympic Qualifying tournament the same year.

Okoth is a Corporal of KDF and is described as one of the finest boxers of his generation.

Like most of the youth in the slums which are home to some of Kenya’s poorest residents, Okoth recounted how after earning a few coins from selling water he would later use them to buy mandazi.

 “I remember it was in 1997 when I used to wake up very early in the morning to take water to the residents at the small fee before the big bully boys arrived. After drawing water, I would take a walk to the nearby St. Theresa’s Hall where Okinyi was training and he convinced me to take up the sport,” Okoth said.

While still learning the ropes, Okoth was spotted by outgoing Government Spokesman Colonel (RTD) Cyrus Oguna who helped the ambitious young boxer to be enlisted in KDF for military training.

“I can also recall that by then, I was incorporated in the national team - Hit Squad - for the Commonwealth Games in Australia but I skipped it for the sake of KDF job to be able to take care of my family,” explained Okoth.