Namibia is making its comeback to the Africa Elite Boxing Championships, set to take place from October 14-27 in Kinshasa, DR Congo. This marks the country’s first participation in this prestigious boxing event since 2017, when they achieved their best performance in Congo Brazzaville, earning two gold medals through light-flyweight Matias Hamunyela and light-welterweight Jonas Jonas, ultimately finishing fourth overall.

Benjamin Rebang, President of the Namibia Boxing Federation and team manager for the Kinshasa-bound boxers, announced that Namibia will be represented by four athletes, led by featherweight Tryagain Ndevelo, with Joseph Titus Muunda serving as head coach. Jonas, Namibia’s most decorated amateur boxer, will not compete as he is preparing for a professional fight later this month.

Rebang addressed concerns regarding the absence of Namibia in the last two editions held in Maputo and Yaounde, attributing it to funding challenges.

Confident in his abilities, skipper Ndevelo has vowed to win gold in his debut at the Africa Elite Championships. “I’m calm and composed. I’m going hard and strong on my opponents; they’ll have it rough and will cry out my name loud after I hammer each one of them,” Ndevelo stated in a phone interview from Namibia.

Namibia’s history in the Africa Elite Championships includes its first gold medal won by light-flyweight Japhet Uutoni in 2005 in Casablanca, Morocco, with Hamunyela and Jonas adding to the medal tally in 2017. The country’s first medalist was middleweight Sackey Shivute, who claimed silver in 1998 in Algiers after losing to Senegal’s El Hadji Djibril in the finals.

In the all-time medal standings of this esteemed tournament, Namibia ranks 15th overall, boasting three golds, one silver, and two bronze medals won by bantamweight Immanuel Naindjala and heavyweight Tobias Munihango at the 2005 Championships in Casablanca.

Here’s Namibia’s team heading to the DRC:

Featherweight: Tryagain Morning Ndevelo

Minimumweight: Elfas Imene Tomas

Bantamweight: Johannes Trofimus

Light-heavyweight: Gerbhared Ipinge

Head Coach: Joseph Titus Muunda

Team Manager: Benjamin Rebang