Serbia’s Mia Topic and Romania’s Fabian Jipeanu became the best U15 boxers at the Boxam U15-U17-U19 in La Nucia, Spain after the finals of the smallest age group have concluded at the Camilo Cano Sports Hall.
Altogether 246 female and male boxers from 21 nations from four continents are competing in the new edition of the Boxam Tournament.
Austria, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Denmark, France, Iceland, Kuwait, Latvia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Palestine, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Serbia, host Spain, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Venezuela are participating in the Boxam U15-U17-U19 Tournament.
The bout of the day
Romania’s Alexandru Butan used his height advantage effectively against Spain’s Diego Hernandez in the first round of their amazing semi-final. The Romanian was 10cm taller than the local boxer but Hernandez returned to the business with heavier punches in the second. The Spanish athlete began the third round with an amazing jab and he mobilized all of his power but Butan kept his advantage therefore the Romanian will meet Lazaro Hernandez in the final of the 50kg.
The surprise of the day
Turkmenistan’s Ezbermuhammet Myratdurdyyev was amazing in the quarter-finals of the 63kg but he had to meet France’s No.1, Djibril Bouaoun in the semi-finals. The French moved a lot on feet to find the best angles against the 16-year-old Turkmen and he had the advantage on the scorecards after two rounds. Bouaoun eliminated his main rival out of the competition and he will be boxing for the gold medal with Puerto Rico’s Samuel Morales.
The Round-Up
Spain’s Joel Gutierrez had some difficulties in the first round against Denmark’s Abert Jeppesen but he turned up the heat in the second during their 46kg semi-final. The U17 Spanish boxer landed much stronger and better punches in the second round and his outstanding finish decided their contest today. Gutierrez will be boxing for the title of the weight class with Romania’s European U15 Champion Cristi Andrei Casu who stopped Turkmenistan’s Ysmayyl Mollayev.
Turkmenistan’s Atabek Hojyyev, the Asian U15 Champion, joined the U17 age group but he is a fantastic talent despite his age of 15. Turkmenistan’s new sensation controlled the first and second rounds against Mexico’s Marcos Rodriguez and had the advantage on the scorecards. Hojyyev was smarter in the exchanges than the attacking Mexican and he advanced to the finals as first from Turkmenistan therefore he will meet Serbia’s Ognjen Staletovic who knocked out his Puerto Rican rival.
Spain’s Elijah Immanuel Sanchez, the winner of the Bornemissza Memorial and the European medallist, dominated his contest against Latvia’s Silvestrs Vasilevskis. He moved forward more this time but he caught the taller opponent with heavy punches in the second and third rounds of their 54kg semi-final. Sanchez will be also the favourite for the gold medal in the final against her teammate, Rayan Haryz Et-Tayeb.
France’s Shanon Cabane controlled the first exchanges against Puerto Rico’s Sofia Ramirez and she felt that she is better in all aspects of boxing than her Central American opponent. The 17-year-old French is probably the best female boxer at the 57kg in her age group and she stopped Ramirez in a quick semi-final bout. Cabane will have a superb final against Spain’s European U19 bronze medallist Cristina Peinado who won her second fight by RSC in La Nucia.
Romania’s Raian Nicholas Cola landed a lethal punch in the first round of his 57kg semi-final and it was also with perfect timing and strength to knockout Spain’s Mario Hernandez. The Romanian uses this Boxam Tournament as a preparation for the European U17 Boxing Championships and his KO victory increases his motivation for the final of the 57kg against Serbia’s Todor Lucic.
France’s European U19 silver medallist from last year, Maelys Panizzutti had to miss Loznica on August but she proved her amazing future potential at the Boxam where she stopped Spain’s Aurora Barrabi at the 60kg. Another female sensation, Netherlands’ European U17 Champion Zoe Vogels also won her semi-final by RSC, she was too strong for Mexico’s Aurora Castro at the 65kg weight category.
Spain’s Andrea Buelga, the European U19 silver medallist, proved better performance in La Nucia than yesterday and she felt distance well against Puerto Rico’s Nikeysha Guernard. The 17-year-old local No.1 performed even better in the second round when the referee counted the Puerto Rican. Buelga, who has already 65 bouts in total, increased her tempo in the third and she won their 54kg semi-final by large margin of difference therefore she will now meet the Fuenlabrada-based Paula Garcia.
France’s Sunjie Lopes was amazing in the previous parts of the Boxam Tournament and she had a strong start also against Mexico’s Carolina Ibarra at the 54kg final bout. The French used the same strategy as in her semi-final and she won the title of the competition with excellent performance in the entire event.
The Serbians impressed also in the women’s U15 finals, their Mia Kerosevic had a quick success over Poland’s Nadia Bal at the 44kg weight class. Her compatriot, Mia Topic used her height advantage against Mexico’s Martha Rivera and she felt the distance well enough today as in the semi-finals. Topic landed decision-making punches in the third round therefore the referee confirmed her RSC victory before the final gong.
Poland’s Zofia Golota and Mexico’s Brittany Franco both were counted by the Spanish referee before the final round therefore the result was depended on their performance in the third. Golota increased her speed in the third, and her switch was enough to win this hectic 70kg final fight.
Romania’s Fabian Jipeanu was amazing in the entire tournament and he was unstoppable also in the final of the 40kg for Ostoja Drulovic of Serbia. Following his serious body punches, the Serbian went down to the floor and the Romanian confirmed as the RSC winner of the final. His teammate, David Popescu was too smart for Mexico’s Santiago Santamaria and he earned the next gold medal for Romania in the U15 level.
Mexico’s Juan Estrada had a strong start against Spain’s Abraham Ponce in an emotional final bout today which decided the gold medal at the 42kg. The Mexican won the first round but Ponce changed his rhythm in the second to equalize the results on the scorecards. Estrada landed the decisive punches in the third round which delivered a fantastic gold medal for Mexico in this top final bout.
Turkmenistan’s Arslan Rejepov worked from longer distance in the first round of the 44kg final against Romania’s Auras Cantar and he looked better in the exchanges. The 14-year-old Turkmen controlled most of the actions in this superb final and he earned his nation’s first gold medal in La Nucia. The second U15 finalist from Turkmenistan, Arslan Rejepov lost to Venezuela’s Jhonathan Isaac Gomez at the 46kg title bout.