Sanford carries small town pride all the way to the Olympic podium
For the first time in 28 years, a Canadian is heading home from the Olympic Games with a boxing medal.
And more specifically, the medal will be brought home to the rural Nova Scotia town of Kennetcook, as Wyatt Sanford’s split decision loss to France’s Sofiane Oumiha in a semifinal of the men’s 63.5kg event on Sunday earned him a bronze medal.
The 25-year-old lost 4-1 on points, but was guaranteed a medal entering the bout as each boxer who is defeated in the semifinal receives a bronze.
Fighting in front of a partisan French crowd on Sunday, Sanford was aggressive in his approach to the match, but Oumiha showed why he’s word-class. Fighting from his back foot, the French boxer defended well, and landed enough counter-punches to get the edge on Sanford in the first round.
Sanford, like he had done all tournament, showed resilience, fighting a strong second and third round, subduing the crowd at North Paris Arena.
In the end, the three-time lightweight world champion and 2016 Olympic silver medallist from France won by split decision, 4-1. Four judges scored the match 29-28 in favour of Oumiha, while one scored the match 29-28 in favour of the Canadian.
“Super happy with the performance. It was a back-and-forth war,” said Sanford following the bout. “We got a bronze medal, we didn’t get the decision, but super happy with it. Wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Sanford qualified him for his second Olympic Games after winning gold in the men’s 63.5kg event at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games. He fought in the 69kg event in Tokyo, but was eliminated in the first round. In Paris, he secured two wins before the semifinal round.
The last Canadian to win an Olympic boxing medal was David Defiagbon, who won a heavyweight silver at Atlanta 1996. It was Sanford’s goal headed into Paris to break the drought, and he did exactly that.
“Right now I still have to let sink in, I’m sure once I hit the roots of Kennetcook, and (see) the community it will sink in what transpired here and what the achievement is,” the boxer said. “But right now I get to sit back, enjoy a couple of burgers, put my weight back on and just be with my family.”
Sanford is originally from the rural community of Kennetcook, Nova Scotia, located roughly an hour north of Halifax.
The municipality that includes Kennetcook only has a population of roughly 400 people, but on Sunday they were represented in a boxing ring on the world stage. And they were out in full force for a viewing party of their hometown hero.
“Doesn’t matter if you come from a city of four million people, or a small village with 400 people,” Sanford said. “You set your goals you work hard every day… eventually over the years that hard work will pay off.”