David Nyika


David Kieran Nyika is a New Zealand amateur heavyweight boxer. He won the men's light heavyweight division at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and the men's heavyweight division at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
He was the sparring partner to Sonny Bill Williams for his fight against Chauncy Welliver.

Amateur career

Born in Hamilton in 1995, Nyika is of Ugandan and Welsh descent through his father, and English descent through his mother.
Nyika began his career as a light heavyweight before converting to a heavyweight. He has dominated a vast array of bouts throughout his amateur career, including strong events in Warsaw, Canberra, Glasgow, and Shkodër. Nyika is also a past competitor in both the AIBA Junior and Youth World Championships. He won the New Zealand Junior National Championships three consecutive years in a row from 2011 to 2013, as well as the New Zealand National Championships the following year in 2014.
Nyika also had success outside of New Zealand, winning silver at the Oceania Youth Championships and bronze at the Feliks Stamm Memorial Tournament. He has won amateur tournaments such as the OCBC Oceania Confederation Boxing Championships, Feliks Stamm Memorial Tournament and the Commonwealth Games.
Nyika had suffered his first loss as a heavyweight to be eliminated from the world championships in Doha. Having been handed a first-round bye, Nyika lost his second-round bout 3–0 on a unanimous decision to the then world's fourth-ranked amateur, Rustam Tulaganov of Uzbekistan. One judge awarded all three rounds to Tulaganov but the other two acknowledged Nyika won one round.

Awards and recognitions