Seifu Makonnen (11 June 1952 – 15 June 2020), known by the nickname Tibo, was a two-time Olympic boxer from

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

Biography

He was born in

Aleltu Aleltu is one of the woredas in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. It was part of former Bereh woreda. It is part of the North Shewa Zone. Towns located in this woreda include Tale, Bakkee, Digare, Sant'e and Galata. The closest major cities includ ...

, in the province of Showa. By the age of 12, he already showed athletic prowess as a bodybuilder. In 1971, inspired by

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

, he became a boxer. An American coach, Edward Simon, recognized Makonnen's ability and welcomed Makonnen into his classes. Makonnen then fought exhibition bouts in front of as many as 50,000 people at His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie Stadium. In August 1972, the Ethiopian Olympic Committee chose Makonnen for the team at the

1972 Munich Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

as a light heavyweight. Awarded a scholarship by the German Sports Ministry, Makonnen went to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

two months early to train in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Stadium. While in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, he fought 10 exhibition fights and finished a course of studies in exercise science. At the

1972 Olympics 1972 Olympics refers to both: *1972 Winter Olympics, which were held in Sapporo, Japan *1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an ...

, he lost his only bout to Harald Skog of Norway on points. Makonnen ended in an eight-way tie for ninth place out of 28 fighters in the Olympic finals. He earned the nickname Tibo, which means ''knockout'' in

Amharic Amharic is an Ethio-Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amhara people, and also serves as a lingua franca for all other metropolitan populati ...

. In 1974 he was imprisoned by the

Derg The Derg or Dergue (, ), officially the Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC), was the military junta that ruled Ethiopia, including present-day Eritrea, from 1974 to 1987, when they formally "Civil government, civilianized" the ...

regime for several months. In 1976, Makonnen was again selected for the

1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

and many said he was a medal hope, but he was unable to compete because of the African boycott of the Olympics. His scheduled bout with Robert Burgess of Bermuda was listed as a walk-over (not available to compete). Makonnen received awards and recognition from His Imperial Majesty

Haile Selassie Haile Selassie I (born Tafari Makonnen or ''Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles#Lij, Lij'' Tafari; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as the Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles, Rege ...

, president

Jomo Kenyatta Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He played a significant role in the ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

, president

Idi Amin Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 30 May 192816 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until Uganda–Tanzania War, his overthrow in 1979. He ruled as a Military dictatorship, ...

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

, and president

Julius Nyerere Julius Kambarage Nyerere (; 13 April 1922 – 14 October 1999) was a Tanzanian politician, anti-colonial activist, and political theorist. He governed Tanganyika (1961–1964), Tanganyika as prime minister from 1961 to 1962 and then as presid ...

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

. After 1976, Makonnen fought and won in

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and throughout

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, then returned to Ethiopia as a national trainer. In 1980, he moved to the United States and trained athletes in many sports, including

track & field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and ...

and

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

, as well as boxing. Makonnen started a weekly sports radio program in

for the Ethiopian community in Washington, DC, interviewing more than 180 people over the years. In the mid-1980s he moved to Los Angeles where he co-founded the Dengel Mariam Orthodox Church, serving on their board from 1986-93. He was also active in support of the Los Angeles Ethiopian soccer team. Until 2006, he hosted a weekly Ethiopian Olympic sports program on New World Radio (WUST 1120 AM). Makonnen led an annual celebration of the anniversary of

Abebe Bikila ''Shambel'' Abebe Bikila (; August 7, 1932 – October 25, 1973) was an Ethiopian marathon runner who was a back-to-back Olympic marathon champion. He was the first Ethiopian Olympic gold medalist, winning his first gold medal at the 1960 S ...

's Olympic Marathon victories.Abebe Bikila Day International Peace Half Marathon
/ref> Makonnen died in Los Angeles after a long illness with diabetes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Makonnen, Seifu 1953 births 2020 deaths Light-heavyweight boxers Ethiopian male boxers Olympic boxers for Ethiopia Boxers at the 1972 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Oromia