The university’s boxing squad is celebrating an outstanding achievement after retaining their title as number 1 for men’s boxing for the second year in a row at last weekend’s BUCS Boxing Championships in Portsmouth. Their impressive medal haul — two golds, one silver, and two bronze medals — played a crucial role in securing the overall men’s championship title.
With a largely new team stepping into the ring, the squad delivered a series of standout performances resulting in five medals across the competition – three in the men’s bouts and two in women’s.
Ross Wilkinson, Northumbria Sport’s Boxing Coach expressed immense pride in the athletes’ achievements, saying: “I'm over the moon with the team, and it's amazing to win BUCS for the second year in a row. It was a largely new team and they gave it their all. Every one of them left everything in there.”
Medal Winners
- Divine Omojor – Elite Gold, 85kg
- Mahmoud Karnaba – Elite Gold, 65kg
- Gideon Amofah – Silver, 0–5 Bouts, 85kg
- Leslie Craig – Bronze, 0–5 Bouts, 55kg
- Ruby Connell – Bronze, 0–5 Bouts, 67.5kg
The coach highlighted the crucial role played by the team’s two Elite Gold medallists, Divine Omojor and Mahmoud Karnaba, noting their skills and determination helped to deliver the medal results. He explained: “It's great to have these two in the squad as they have great experience and have helped the squad throughout the year to help them prepare for this tournament.”
This year’s BUCS competition also marked a special milestone for the squad beyond the ring. For the first time, a large group of non‑competing team members travelled to cheer on their teammates. On this, Wilkinson said: “I want to say thank you to the team, to those competing and to those who came down to show support. It’s the first year we've had so many come who weren’t competing, and it made the trip a lot better.”
Securing the BUCS title two years in a row stands as a testament to the squad’s resilience, evolving talent, and team spirit — and sets the stage for an exciting future for the programme.
