The 2025 Commonwealth Games have ended, but one of the biggest stories has unfolded away from the ring. Four Ugandan boxers are missing after the team’s campaign in Glasgow, prompting a police investigation and renewing questions about why some athletes choose not to return home after major sporting events.
Police Scotland confirmed it has received reports that several athletes are unaccounted for. Officers are working with the UK Home Office as investigations continue into the circumstances surrounding the disappearances.
Ugandan broadcaster NBS Sports identified the missing athletes as Angel Katushabe, Nuhu Batte, Ibrahim Khemis and Emily Nakalema. According to the outlet, one of the athletes, speaking anonymously, said the group intends to seek asylum in search of better training facilities and greater opportunities to develop their boxing careers.
The incident adds another chapter to a familiar pattern at the Commonwealth Games. Similar cases followed the 2014 Glasgow Games and the 2018 Gold Coast edition, where dozens of athletes either went missing or applied for asylum after the competition.
Uganda’s boxing campaign itself produced few highlights. Katushabe, Batte and Nakalema reached the quarter-finals before exiting, while Khemis was eliminated in the preliminary round. Teammates Alfred Ojok and Aziz Abdul also failed to reach the medal rounds.
Abdul’s campaign ended in controversy after he was disqualified for repeated fouls against England’s eventual heavyweight champion Damar Thomas. “This referee’s decision is not right, and I am not happy,” Abdul said. “Of course it’s unfair.”
With around 3,000 athletes from 74 nations competing in Glasgow, the Games once again celebrated sporting excellence. Yet the disappearance of several competitors has shifted attention from medals to the personal choices and difficult realities that some athletes face long after the closing ceremony.
