In Debrecen, Eastern Hungary, the Bocskai Memorial Tournament opened with 35 excellent preliminary contests as this eagerly anticipated competition finally got under way.
The opening day saw Russia's European Championship silver medallist, Belik Galanov, put on a great show against England's 18-year-old Charlie Edwards. In the end, the experienced Russian fighter defeated Edwards and advanced to the last eight of the Light Flyweight class. Galanov secured a silver medal at the Bocskai Memorial Tournament in 2009 but his main goal this year is gold.
Hungary's local Flyweight fighter, Beijing Olympian Norbert Kalucza, moved down from his original weight bantamweight division to compete. He was able to celebrate his close victory against Morocco's African Championships silver medallist Abdelali Daraa in front of his supportive family in Debrecen.
Azerbaijan's AIBA World Championship bronze medallist, Samir Mammadov, returned to the world of boxing last year and was well-prepared for the Bocskai Memorial Tournament. The newly crowned Azeri National Champion eliminated Sweden's European Championship bronze medallist, veteran Bashir Hassan, by 14:10. His next opponent will be Turkey's Beijing Olympian, Furkan Memis Ulas, who triumphed over Tunisia's African Youth Champion Bilel Mohamdi 12:8.
China's Lightweight No.1, Asian Championship silver medallist, experienced Liu Qiang had a tough rival in the first preliminary round, fighting against Tunisia's Beijing Olympian, Alaa Shili. The North African boxer has turned his focus back to boxing following his studies but was unable to stop the Chinese star in Hungary.
Poland's Youth Olympic Games bronze medallist, 18-year-old Dawid Michelus, also made an impression during his debut in Debrecen. He eliminated local star, Robert Konnyu, in a hectic battle. Korea's Asian Games competitor, Shim Hyun Yong, also triumphed over a boxer from the host nation, Hungary's Andras Vadasz, who was knocked down by the Asian fighter in the second round.
Azerbaijan's European Junior Championship silver medallist, 19-year-old Tamerlan Abdullayev, was victorious at the National Elite Championships in December and shocked the only Welshmen in the Bocskai Memorial Tournament. Current European Champion Fred Evans was left stunned by Abdullayev's tough punches. The final verdict of their Welterweight preliminary fight was 8:7 to Abdullayev.
Uzbekistan's Youth Olympic Games silver medallist, Ahmad Mamadjanov, will be celebrating his 20th birthday soon and was seen making a successful debut against Tunisia's Aymen Mejri. Moldova's London Olympian, Vasile Belous, demonstrated his skills against Finland's Henri Kekalainen and won the bout by a large margin of points.
In the middleweight class, Morocco's African Championship silver medallist Badreddine Haddioui eliminated China's former Asian Champion, Zhang Jianting, by 12:6. Finland's 19-year-old Ville Hukkanen defeated another Asian Champion in Debrecen, Korea's current gold medallist, Kim Hyeon Kyu.
Russia's European Championship silver medallist, 26-year-old Nikita Ivanov, who is the titleholder of this event, defeated Moldova's European Championship bronze medallist Victor Cotiujanschii by 20:11 and will now face Hungary's National Champion, the 19-year-old Peter Nagy in the Light Heavyweight division.
A quality first day all round.
Full Day 1 results Boxing2012 - Bocskai Memorial Tournament Day1.pdf
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