The winners of the third competition day at the 77th edition of the Strandja Memorial Tournament all advanced to the quarter-finals in Sofia, Bulgaria today.
The next edition of the European Elite Boxing Championships will also take place in Sofia on September 15-26 in 2026.
The bout of the day
Serbia’s Nina Radovanovic was a quarter-finalist boxer in the Tokyo Olympics five years ago but the veteran is still hungry to earn medals in the big events. The 32-year-old Serbian 51kg boxer made exceptional second and third rounds to beat Turkey’s Gamze Soguksu in a great preliminary contest.
The surprise of the day
Brazil’s two-time Olympian Jucielen Romeu had to fight in the Ring B almost in the same time as Coutinho in the Ring A. The Panamerican Champion Romeu did not find the fighting distance against Uzbekistan’s Khumorabonu Mamajonova and she was not able to repeat her previous technician performance therefore surprisingly the Asian boxer joined the quarter-finals of the women’s 57kg.
The Round-Up
Germany’s Maxi Kloetzer and Ireland’s Daina Moorehouse were born in the same year and they knew each other well since 2017, their youth ages. The German is usually smaller than all of her opponents but the former European Youth Champion Moorehouse has the same height. Kloetzer looked quicker in the exchanges today and her speed was the decisive factor between them in this 51kg bout.
Italy’s newcomer in the national squad, Michel Vescovini surprised Armenia’s European bronze medallist Anush Grigoryan in the first round of their 51kg meeting. The Italian moved a lot on feet and she made a good impression but Grigoryan’s routine decided their bout due to the Armenian caught her in the corners with heavy punches.
Ireland’s next 51kg female boxer, Caitlin Fryers performed better than her teammate, Daina Moorehouse and she joined the next round of the category. The Irish had a tactical first round against England’s World Championships competitor Kelsey Oakley and she delivered a great second which guaranteed her success on the scorecards.
Michaela Walsh is one of the Irish veterans in the women’s national squad with 13 years of experience as an elite international boxer. The Commonwealth Games winner destroyed Madalina Grabucea’s defence in the first round and she was stronger minutes by minutes to eliminate the younger Italian at the 57kg.
Jucielen Romeu is Brazil’s top boxer at the women’s 57kg weight class but this time a younger hopeful, Jessica Coutinho, also got the right to represent the country in a big event. The South American was a hard target for Bulgaria’s Hristea Ninova and her footwork was the difference between them today which guaranteed Coutinho’s successful opener.
England’s Elise Glynn claimed her first major title still back at the 2017 edition of the European Junior Boxing Championships. The 57kg boxer was not able to qualify for the Paris Olympics but she did not give up her dreams to compete in Los Angeles in 2028. Glynn found the best range late in her contest and Uzbekistan’s Nigina Uktamova defeated her in a close bout.
Mongolia’s Namuun Monkhor earned her first medal, a bronze in the 2015 Junior World Boxing Championships and she joined the elite squad eight years ago. The Asian silver medallist returned to her best category, the 60kg and she proved her excellent technical skills against Turkey’s Evin Erginoguz on Day3.
Egypt’s Yomna Ayyad qualified for the Paris Olympics and she had an energetic performance against Brazil’s Rafaela Marques Silva to win that 60kg bout. Brazil’s next boxer in this weight class, the reigning World Champion Rebeca Santos dominated her second contest in Sofia over Romania’s Claudia Nechita.
Donjeta Sadiku is Kosovo’s historic World medallist and the two-time Olympian also competes in the annual Strandja Memorial Tournament. The Kosovan maintained the best fighting distance in the first round against Czechia’s Barbora Maxova and she controlled the second and third on their meeting at the 60kg.
The Welsh boxers have been preparing for the upcoming Commonwealth Games and their No.1, Owain Harris-Allan, secured his second success at the Strandja Memorial Tournament. He claimed a bronze in the last Commonwealth Games at the age of 18 and he looked confident from the first seconds against Brazil’s Ramon Conceicao today.
Bulgaria’s superstar, Radoslav Rosenov proved his excellent technical skills once again, he met North Macedonia’s Alen Rustemovski in the Round of 16 at the men’s 60kg. The Bulgarian was untouchable once again in this contest and he delivered the second clear success in the front of the home crowd.
United States’ Salim Ellis-Bay and Armenia’s Artur Bazeyan both eliminated strong opponents in the previous preliminary round of the men’s 60kg. The US teenager had physical advantage and he landed more shots than the European U22 Champion Armenian therefore he deserved to join the quarter-finals.
Mongolia’s Buyandalai Bayarkhuu was expected an easier job against Germany’s Mohamed Siala in the Round of 16 but finally he could manage that success with the right tactics. His teammate in the same 60kg, Lundaa Gantumur was competitive only in the first round against Brazil’s World silver medallist Luiz Gabriel Oliveira.
England’s Kayla Allen won the women’s 65kg weight class at the Boxam Tournament and their European U23 Champion Sacha Hickey impressed in the same division at the Strandja Memorial on Day3. The young talent used her height advantage and longer reach effectively against Turkey’s veteran Sema Caliskan to reach the last eight in Sofia.
Belgium’s Paris Olympian Oshin Derieuw was too strong for Bulgaria’s Valeria Andreeva before Turkey’s Berfin Kabak eliminated Algeria’s Women’s World bronze medallist Ichrak Chaib at the 65kg. Brazil’s Haziel Krishna Santos eliminated Switzerland’s No.1, Anna Jenni while Ireland’s Olympian Grainne Walsh also secured her place in the last eight.
Germany’s European U23 Champion Nikita Putilov met in an anticipated +90kg contest Armenia’s World silver medallist Davit Chaloyan in the end of the evening session. The German used his best combinations in the critical moments and he advanced to the last eight such as England’s Damar Thomas, Ukraine’s Andriy Khaletskyi and Bulgaria’s Yordan Hernandez Morejon.