The 29th edition of the Feliks Stamm Memorial Tournament, held in Warsaw, Poland came to an end last week as this preparatory primed its participants, from over 20 nations, for the upcoming AIBA European Olympic Qualkifying Event in Trabzon, Turkey from 13-22 April.
Poland's former AIBA World Champion and multiple-European Champion, Karolina Michalczuk, and Turkey's Sumeyra Kaya Yazici put on a remarkable final battle for the women's flyweight gold medal contest. It was the Polish star who prevailed 18:12.
Turkey's two-time AIBA World Champion and current European Champion, Gulsum Tatar, and Poland's AIBA World Championships bronze medallist Karolina Graczyk continued the sequence of enthralling women's finals. It was the Turkish boxer who outboxed her rival to triumph 11:8 and take the Lightweight title.
22-year-old former European Youth Champion Lidia Fidura secured the second gold medal for the host nation as the Polish middleweight defeated China's newcomer Gu Chunhong by 9:7 following an excellent final round.
In the men's event, talented Azamat Isakulov surprisingly secured the gold medal at the 2011 Kazakh Men's National Championships and the 21-year-old Light Flyweight once again surprised everyone with some nifty footwork to take the top place of the podium. He was simply too good for Bulgaria's Strandja Memorial Tournament silver medallist Aleksandar Aleksandrov as he stormed to a 14:6 victory and claiming Kazakhstan' sonly gold medal in Warsaw.
Poland's Beijing Olympian Rafal Kaczor returned to the world of boxing only recently but the break seemed to have rejuvenated his performances and he proved this by shocking Russia's European Students Champion Dmitriy Sotnikov to win their Flyweight gold medal bout 15:12. Moldova's European Championships bronze medallist and World Series of Boxing Paris United star Alexandr Riscan failed in his semi-final and travelled back home with a bronze.
Former AIBA World Champion and European Champion Sergey Vodopyanov put on an excellent show for the spectators against Kazakhstan's young Kayrat Yeraliyev in the quarter-final and followed that success by defeating Polish National Championships bronze medallist Mateusz Polski 18:10 at the Bantamweight final.
Turkey's WSB hero Bunyamin Aydin claimed the gold medal in the Lightweight class after beating Scotland's Commonwealth Games silver medallist Josh Taylor by close 9:7.
AIBA World Championships bronze medallist veteran Uranchimeg Munkherdene started his preparation for the London 2012 Olympic Games in style as he triumphed in his first competitive tournament by overwhelming Turkey's Cetin Ozdemir 17:13.
Poland's Sasun Karapetyan, of Armenian-descent, defeated his compatriot, European Students Champion Tomasz Kot following a narrow 13:12 contest in the Welterweight final.
European Champion Artem Chebotarev is fighting for the right to represent Russia at the upcoming AIBA European Olympic Qualifying Eventt in Trabzon. The Russian Middleweight boxer will have been delighted with his preparation in Warsaw as he was too strong for Poland's National Champion Tomasz Jablonski as he dominated their final battle to win 18:14.
Ukraine's Serhiy Lapin then secured his first ever tournament victory in the Light Heavyweight class after dominating Poland's Mateusz Tryc to win 18:14.
National Champion Evgenijus Tutkus achieved the only victory for Lithuania in Warsaw where he defeated Turkey's Avni Yildirim by 11:10 to take the Heavyweight title.
The third Russian gold medal was then secured by 19-year-old AIBA Junior World Champion and current European Youth Champion Gasan Gimbatov, who triumphed over Lithuania's Vitalijus Subacius, fourteen years his senior. Gimbatov was unrelenting as he triumphed 17:9
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