Determined to keep them away from criminal activities, Mombasa-based businesswoman Lela Said Idi made sure to accompany her four sons to boxing competitions in Kisauni.
At the time, the Mombasa-based clothes seller did not realise that her protective instinct as a mother would mark the beginning of her historic journey in boxing. October 2025 was a defining moment for Said in the sport.
She became the first woman in Kenya, and in East Africa to earn the prestigious International Boxing Association (IBA) 3-Star Referee and Judge certification. She passed her examination during Africa Boxing Confederation (AFBC) Zone III Championships held at Moi International Sports Centre Indoor Arena in Nairobi from October 15-25 .
IBA 3-Star Referee and Judge certification is the highest qualification for boxing officials globally.
Leila Said Idi, a Boxing Referee based in Mombasa in her training area in this photo taken on March 3, 2026.
Photo credit: Kevin Odit | Nation Media Group
“They (her sons) are the ones who loved boxing. I simply accompanied them to boxing events to ensure that they were actually going to watch boxing competitions and not engage in crime. You know the crime rate in Mombasa is quite high,”Lela told Nation Sport.
Being a passionate lover of sports who represented Kilindini Secondary School in hockey up to the national level, Lela eventually fell in love with boxing. But her rise to the pinnacle of boxing officiating took a long, winding path, but full of steady progress through the ranks.
Born and raised in Mombasa, the soft-spoken Said first earned her national certification before attaining IBA 1-Star Referee and Judge certification in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in August 2024. Dreaming of officiating at some of the world’s biggest stages, including at the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, she continued to push the limits, upgrading her credential to IBA 2-Star Referee and Judge certification after attending a course in Nairobi in November 2024.
Having seen several officials fail the rigorous IBA 3-Star Referee and Judge certification course, Said, who is a secretary by profession, says she is thrilled to have attained the elite qualification on her first attempt. Out of the five officials from East Africa who undertook the course during AFBC Zone III Championships in Nairobi, only three passed the test.
“I was very proud. It succeeded by the grace of God. I worked very hard (to attain the IBA 3-Star Referee and Judge certification) because my dream has always been to officiate internationally. My passion for sports also made it easy for me to push myself to achieve my dream,” she adds.
The process involved attending classes, and sitting a written examination which accounts for 70 per cent of the course. The remaining 30 per cent is from practical assessment in the ring.
She traces her journey to the pinnacle of boxing officiating back to 2013. Upon noticing her growing interest in boxing, her sons’ coach at a boxing club in Kisauni, whom she identifies only as Shiko, encouraged her to enrol for an upcoming referees and judges training in Mombasa.
“I was hesitant to enrol for the training but she (Shiko) believed in me. She was impressed by my passion for the sport and insisted that I had what it took to pass the training. I attended the training as a representative of the club,” the mother of four recalls, noting that although the 10-day training proved demanding, her passion carried her through. From then on, Said was a regular presence at national league competition. Her duties were limited to ringing the bell and recording bout details.
Then she started officiating in local boxing competitions in Mombasa. She became so synonymous with recording fight details in national leagues that her colleagues started referring to her as “Lela wa vitabu” (Lela who carries books). She served diligently, and it laying the groundwork for a future that would eventually see her break new ground in the sport.
Her first time to officiate as referee in the national league came in 2015 in Thika. Dressed in loose-fitting, breathable dress dera since it was Ramadhan period, she drew a lot of attention from the attendees, many of whom were curious to know who “the new lady in boxing” was.
“I was so tense,” Lela says of the experience, adding that the fear was compounded by the fact that she was officiating in the men’s category.
Leila Said Idi is the first Kenyan woman to get International Boxing Association Star 1 Certification.
Photo credit: Kevin Odit | Nation Media Group
In her career as a boxing referee and judge stretching more than a decade, Said, who undertook Secretarial Studies at Rifkins College in Mombasa, says only three other occasions compare to the fear that she felt that day: a night bout between bitter-rivals Elly Ajowi of Kenya Police and Nickson Abaka of Kenya Defence Forces in Nakuru; a competition in Kisumu which descended into a brawl while she was officiating, and the AFBC Zone III Championships in Nairobi.
“When I first got into the ring, I issued a stern warning to them (Ajowi and Abaka) that if they don’t obey my instructions, I would disqualify them,” she recalls.
After the fights, she received congratulatory messages on her handling of the high-stakes bout. While some people approached her with requests to take her out for dinner in appreciation of her top performance in the fight, others simply wanted to see “the brave woman who had just officiated a tough men’s match”.
Her fear during AFBC Zone III Championships, stemmed from the fact that it was her first time officiating at an international event, which doubled as her test for the IBA 3-Star Referee and Judge certification course.
“I was very afraid on the first day. We had been told that any mistake would result in deduction of marks by the instructors. Our coach advised us to treat it like any other competition and forget about the instructors,” she says, adding that it was a huge relief to her when she passed the assessment .
“I have always been treated well. I always uphold professionalism, they (boxers and their officials) know that when you step into the ring, you are not a friend. All you see is red and blue and you must be tough,” Said says, crediting her family’s support for her rise.
“My parents have always supported me, knowing that I love sports. No one has ever stopped me from doing what I love, as long as it is not something bad,” she says. Her husband Abdalla Iddi has been giving her moral and financial support.
“I have given her moral support and allowed her to travel to officiate matches. She loves the sport, which is a good thing. I will always support her in whatever way I can,” her husband Idi said.
Now, an IBA 3-Star Referee and Judge, the mother of four harbours one big dream.
“I hope that one day, I will officiate in the Olympic Game’s. It is one of my biggest dreams,” she says, adding that she plans to continue referring as long as God allows her.
As a way of promoting boxing and giving back to the society, Said founded the Vijiweni Boxing Club in Mtongwe, Mombasa.
Under the tutelage of coach Moses “Black Moses” Mathenge, the club is home to about 30 fighters, who include both juniors and seniors.
Appealing for support in running the club, Lela says: “We don’t charge any fee because our members come from struggling families. We have expenses to cater for like transport to tournaments, participation fees, meals and uniforms. I’m doing this to keep the children away from crime because in Mombasa there exists the panga gangs.
At the club we uphold discipline and don’t allow drugs. I talk to them as a mother and they call me mum.”
Interestingly, none of her four sons, who were the reasons she got into boxing, are pugilists any more, although they remain passionate about the sport. The eldest, known as Mbarak Sudi, she says has transitioned from boxing to Taekwondo.
