Seifu Mekonnen

Seifu Mekonnen, who later took the name Seifu Tibo, boxed at the 1972 München Olympics. He was also entered at the 1976 Montréal Olympics but did not start due to the African boycott. Between Olympics he trained in Kenya with the Kenyan Breweries Boxing Team, and he was the 1973 East & Central African Champion. Tibo then became coach of the Ethiopian boxing team for two years before moving to the USA in 1979.

In the United States Tibo fought professionally but had only three fights before retiring in 1981. He then became a boxing manager and promoter. He also started the Abebe Bikila Day 8K and Half-Marathon races in the DC area, which raised money for various charities, including the Ethiopian Community Development Council.

Tibo started a weekly sports radio program in Amharic 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. Tibo died in Los Angeles after a long illness with diabetes and the complications of the dreaded disease.