The finals day of the 2015 AFBC African Confederation Boxing Championships produced ten excellent bouts in Casablanca, where hosts Morocco and neighbours Algeria secured nine of the ten gold medals on offer.

Gold medal winners in Casablanca

• 49 kg: Imad Ahyoun, Morocco
• 52 kg: Mohamed Flissi, Algeria
• 56 kg: Mohamed Hamout, Morocco
• 60 kg: Reda Benbaziz, Algeria
• 64 kg: Abdelkader Chadi, Algeria
• 69 kg: Mohammed Rabii, Morocco
• 75 kg: Hossam Hussein Bakr Abdin, Egypt
• 81 kg: Abdelhafid Benchabla, Algeria
• 91 kg: Abdeldjalil Abouhamada, Morocco
• +91 kg: Mohammed Arjaoui, Morocco

Light Flyweight (49 kg) Final

Morocco’s Imad Ahayoun only received the right to fight in the championships just before the start of the event, but performed sensationally in the Light Flyweight final by winning every round against Ghana’s two-time Commonwealth Games competitor Sulemanu Tetteh.

Flyweight (52 kg) Final

AIBA World Boxing Championships silver medallist Mohamed Flissi is one of Africa’s most popular athletes, and the APB boxer walked over to the gold medal after Moroccan National Champion Achraf Kharroubi was unable to compete in the final.

Bantamweight (56 kg) Final

The exciting Mohamed Hamout secured Morocco’s second gold medal of the day after surviving a tough first round against Tunisia’s Bilel M’Hamdi.

Hamout’s accuracy and stamina in the final two rounds led him to a deserved triumph in front of his many supporters.

Lightweight (60 kg) Final

Algeria’s WSB star Reda Benbaziz clinched a deserved Lightweight gold after a terrific tactical performance against Egypt’s Bocskai Memorial Tournament silver medallist Mahmoud Abdelaal.

Light Welterweight (64 kg) Final

Two-time Abdelkader Chadi was one of the most experienced competitors in this event, and the Algerian veteran lived up to his fearsome reputation with an outstanding final triumph over Morocco’s London 2012 Olympian Abdelhak Aatakni.

Welterweight (69 kg) Final

Morocco’s Mohammad Rabii qualified for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games following his amazing season in the World Series of Boxing, and continued his strong form by stopping Egypt’s Walid Sedik Mohamed in the second round of their Welterweight final.

Middleweight (75 kg) Final

Egypt’s third finalist was Beijing 2008 Olympic Games bronze medallist Hossam Hussein Bakr Abdin, who arrived in Casablanca as a prominent AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) athlete.

The Egyptian veteran became the lone African fighter outside of Algeria and Morocco to win gold in the event, when he outperformed Botswana’s African Zone 4 Champion Zibani Chikanda in a very entertaining final.

Light Heavyweight (81 kg) Final

Algeria’s two-time Olympic Games quarter-finalist and national team captain Abdelhafid Benchabla proved he was number one in the very tough Light Heavyweight division after he used his range and accuracy to defeat Egypt’s Abdelrahman Salah Araby.

Heavyweight (91 kg) Final

Algeria’s AIBA World Boxing Championships quarter-finalist Chouaib Bouloudinat was the main favourite of the Heavyweight class, but surprisingly lost his final to Morocco’s Abdeldjalil Abouhamada.

Super Heavyweight (+91 kg) Final

Morocco’s APB star Mohammed Arjaoui finished the tournament with a dynamic performance against Algeria’s Mohamed Grimes to earn the last gold medal in the prestigious event.

Championship facts

Morocco claimed five gold medals on the final day of competition, while Algeria reached the top of the podium four times.

The tenth title went to Egypt, while among the developing African nations, Togo was also able to achieve a great bronze medal in Casablanca.

Quote of the day

“I was very young when I first became involved in the national team, but four years of experience was enough for me to earn a title in such an important event as the AFBC African Confederation Boxing Championships. I boxed better in the semi-final, but my tactic was based on my great physical condition, and I felt before the end of the bout I would win the gold medal,” said Algeria’s Reda Benbaziz.

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