Ghanaian boxers falter in Italy, Olympic dreams hang in balance
Ghana's hopes for Olympic boxing slots dwindled further as Theophilus Kpakpo Allotey suffered a defeat against South Korea's Inkyu Kim yesterday, marking another setback for the Black Bombers team at the Busto Arsizio qualification competition in Italy.
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Allotey's loss compounded the disappointment as Ghana's boxing contingent struggled to secure berths for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
With Allotey's defeat, the prospect of Ghana's representation in boxing at the upcoming Summer Olympics dims. However, a glimmer of hope remains as the team eyes the final qualifying competition scheduled for May in Bangkok, Thailand, as their last chance to clinch spots for Paris.
Earlier, Janet Acquah lost 0-5 to Tapei's Guo-Yi-Xuan in the women's 50 kg flyweight division last Friday.
Five other Ghanaian boxers, including Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Samuel Takyi suffered defeats in Italy.
Allotey, a promising 19-year-old flyweight, scored a 5-0 victory over his Bhutanese opponent, Tashi Wangdi, at the Busto Arsizio Arena in the Round of 32 but failed to go past the Round of 16.
Ghana entered seven boxers into the qualifiers, including Takyi, who was defeated by a Japanese opponent. Jonathan Tetteh's hopes were dashed as he failed to make weight, with his trainer Kwasi Ofori Asare attributing it to miscommunication. Tetteh, however, disputed this claim, shifting blame onto his coach.
However, the light-heavyweight boxer denied failing to make the weight and blamed his coach for letting him down through miscommunication.
In another setback, Mark Ahondjo, a British-based Ghanaian boxer, missed out on the opportunity to compete in Italy, further narrowing Ghana's chances of Olympic representation in boxing.
