The stage was all set for Matias Monteiro to unify both African Featherweight titles. But an injury prevented his crowning moment, which opened the way for Jeremie Likobele to be the star of the last day of competitions for the 2024 IMMAF African Championships.
Also coming in to unify his division, after winning Junior Lightweight gold in 2023, Likobele made history also by becoming the owner of a huge IMMAF record, that of the fastest-ever KO. DR Congo’s Jeremie Likobele needed a mere five seconds to beat Angola’s William Bombo, eclipsing the previous record by Patrick Habirora, from Belgium – nine seconds.
Joining Likobele as a two-time African champion was hometown hero Damian Muller. Despite being taken to the limite by a valiant effort from South Africa’s Obakeng Mahura, Muller once again prevailed, successfully retaining his Flyweight crown, this time in front of passionate supporters.
Another name that made history in the final day was Anderson Gouveia. A 2023 Heavyweight African champion, he dropped down to Light Heavyweight this year. His campaign started with victory over Mario Stefan, the previous 205lbs champion, and this Saturday, Gouveia became a two-weight, two-time African champion by defeating DR Congo’s Herve Zeng with a beautiful display of jiu-jitsu.
Team Angola topped the medal table again with a whopping 11 gold medals, followed closely by South Africa, which took home 7 gold medals. DR Congo came in third with 2 gold medals, followed by Zambia, hosts Namibia, and Zimbabwe with 1 gold medal each. Cameroon and Egypt also earned silver and bronze medals.
The IMMAF returns next with an August doubleheader: first up the Youth World Championships, taking place in Abu Dhabi, between August 5 and 11, followed by the Asian Championships which happens in Lahore, Pakistan for the first time, between August 18 and 22.
