Nicknamed "The Hammer", he captured the African Boxing Union light welterweight and Commonwealth super lightweight titles in 1995 and 1997 respectively, the latter after a controversial victory over Briton Paul Burke in Lusaka.
[3] After showing early promise as a teenager, Bwalya joined Green Buffaloes Stables in 1987 and trained under Vincent Mudenda who helped improve his ringcraft.
[3] He soon came to the attention of national selectors and was chosen to be part of Zambia’s boxing contingent bound for the 1988 Seoul Olympics but it ended in disappointment when he was left out at the last minute.
[3] Two years later, he won another gold medal at the 1991 All-Africa Games in Cairo when he beat Tanzania’s Rashid Haji Ally Matumla on points in the final of the 60 kg weight category.
[3] Bwalya then knocked out Kenya’s Dalmas Otieno on 11 March 1995 for the right to contest for the vacant African Boxing Union Super Lightweight title against Ethiopian Gashaw Gudeta in Lusaka on 25 June 1995.
[3] With the title fight due to take place on 30 June 1996, Bwalya warmed up for it with a points decision over Sakabunda in Kabwe on 6 April 1996 to register an 11th straight victory but the bout against Ryan was a non-starter as it was postponed indefinitely due to the Commonwealth Boxing Council ruling that the fight could not go on as the British Boxing Board of Control had revoked the British boxer’s licence on medical grounds.
[3] Bwalya got his shot at the Commonwealth title the following year on 22 April 1997, which was by then held by Bernard Paul and he lost by half a point, a decision which was hotly disputed by the Zambian’s camp.
[5] The 12 round bout against Burke which was promoted by the Zambia Professional Boxing Board of Control (ZPBBC), took place on Sunday, 14 December 1997 at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka.
Bwalya dominated the opening rounds and with Burke persistently holding the Zambian, fans registered their displeasure leading to a caution from referee Hugo Mulenga.
[6] The score card by the referee, who was the sole judge, revealed that Bwalya had won through a 107-105 points decision, over the vociferous complaints by Burke's camp, who claimed the final round was at least two minutes short.
[7][8] Burke himself called it a planned dramatic robbery and added that he broke into a hearty laugh when he heard the verdict and said it would not do the development of boxing in the country any good if referees resorted to aiding boxers in robbing fights in such a manner.
[10] It was reported that Bwalya went on a two-day drinking spree to celebrate his victory with friends and after complaining of a severe headache, he was taken to the University Teaching Hospital around 02:00hrs on the morning of the Tuesday after the fight, where he later slipped into a coma and was transferred to the intensive care unit.
[9] A team of doctors was assigned to Bwalya but with no improvement in his condition, a hospital source revealed that a blood sample taken from him confirmed the presence of malaria parasites.
[15] However, Mulenga denied having been advised to stop the fight saying it was against boxing rules for a referee to talk to any official although he could communicate by way of sign language, which he said never occurred between the two.
[17] The autopsy revealed that Bwalya died of cardio-respiratory failure, cerebral concussion, severe blunt head injuries and right side broncho-pneumonia.