Wyatt Sanford has ended a Canadian Olympic medal drought in boxing, but he won’t get a chance to fight for gold.
Sanford lost a split decision (4-1) against three-time world champion Sofiane Oumiha of France in the semifinals of the men’s 63.5-kilogram division on Sunday, forcing the Canadian to settle for bronze.
Both semifinal losers earn bronze medals in boxing.
“The guy from France is one hell of a fighter. Great boxer,” Sanford told CBC Olympics. “Hope he wins the tournament now. Super happy with the performance, we just didn’t get the outcome.
It is Canada’s 16th medal at Paris 2024.
Sanford, from Kennetcook, N.S., guaranteed Canada’s first medal in the sport since 1996 with a split-decision win over Ruslan Abdullaev of Uzbekistan on Wednesday.
David Defiagbon’s heavyweight silver from Atlanta 1996 was the last Olympic boxing medal for Canada. Lennox Lewis is the most recent Canadian Olympic champ, winning heavyweight gold in 1988.
On Sunday, the referee gave a standing eight-count to Sanford after Oumiha connected with one shot.
Along with his three world titles, Oumiha won silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
“He’s a super fast speedy guy … It took me a little too long to get the timing for his speed,” Sanford said. “That’s just the way it goes.”
Sanford, 25, is the only male on Canada’s boxing team for the second Olympics in a row. He won gold at the 2023 Pan American Games to book a Paris ticket.
He had made his Olympic debut in the men’s 69-kg event at Tokyo three years ago and was eliminated in the first round.
Sanford got huge support back home in rural Nova Scotia. Local MP Kody Blois said more than 1,000 people got up early to gather in a park to watch the semifinal bout.