Algeria Claims Morocco Attempted to Manipulate African Boxing Championship Results

The African men’s and women’s boxing championship ended in Maputo, the Mozambican capital, with the victory of the Algerian team. A victory that the Mozambican boxing federation would have tried to usurp, at the instigation of the Moroccan delegation, accuses TSA Algérie, denouncing a hasty press release from the Mozambican federation which attributes the victory to its team which only won 7 medals (5 gold and 2 bronze) against 15 for the Algerians (4 gold, 5 silver and 6 bronze).

According to the same source, the Mozambican Boxing Federation would have acted in this way, at the request of the Moroccan delegation, in order to deprive Algeria of the first place. As proof, it points out that the Moroccan news agency MAP did not mention Algeria in its report on the event, which was relayed by several Moroccan and foreign media, including Algerian media.

The Mozambican federation had established a ranking placing its team, which obtained the most gold medals, in the lead. The "malicious" intention was discovered thanks to the vigilance of the Algerian ambassador to Mozambique, which allowed the ranking to be revised. At the end of the competition, the Algerian diplomatic representation informed the Algerian authorities of the attempted manipulation and announced on its Twitter account the victory of the Algerian boxing team with 15 medals.

The International Boxing Federation (IBA), the only body authorized to establish the ranking and make it public, confirmed Algeria’s victory with a total of 41 points, ahead of Mozambique (30 points). According to a member of the Algerian federation, the referees would have been subjected to pressure from the Moroccan parties to make the Algerian boxers lose during the tournament.