Full name Hero Murunga Rated at Welterweight Weight 67 kg Nickname(s) "Dick" and "Tiger" Name Richard Murunga Martial art Boxing | Nationality Kenya Role Boxer Division Welterweight Sport Boxing Height 1.78 m | |
Born December 22, 1952 (age 71) ( 1952-12-22 ) Olympic medals Boxing at the 1972 Summer Olympics - Welterweight People also search for Janos Kajdi, Jesse Valdez, Emilio Correa | ||
Hero ("Dick" or "Tiger") Murunga (born 22 December 1952 in Amagoro, Teso District) is a former boxer from Kenya.
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Amateur career
He started boxing in 1968, at the age of 19, encouraged by his father, Ernest Illuk, who was a Kenyan army officer. Two years later he joined the Kenyan Army.
Murunga was a bronze medalist at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, losing to silver medalist Janos Kajdi.
He deserted the army in 1973 as Kenya boxing authorities did not allow him to join professional ranks. Subsequently he went to Uganda and competed at the East and Central Africa Amateur Boxing Association (Fescaaba) championship representing Uganda under pseudonym Feisal Musante. He was later arrested, when he returned to Kenya.
Pro career
Known as "Tiger", Murunga turned pro after his amateur career in 1973. He was promoted by Mogens Palle. Murunga was the first Kenyan professional boxer.
He fought three fights in Europe, winning all three bouts and retiring late in 1974.
Personal life
Murunga has two wives, Mariam Wambui and Nawal Ahmed, and seven children. He converted to Islam when he married his second wife Nawal, and took a Muslim name, Khalifa. Formerly based in Denmark and Kuwait, as of 2003 he lived in Bombolulu in Mombasa.