Top boxers have it easy on opening day
NEW DELHI: Most of the medal contenders won their respective bouts on the opening day of AIBA Women’s World Championships with Commonwealth Games gold medallist Anja Staridsman of Australia advancing to the second round in a split verdict here Thursday.
The bout between Stridsman and Cordero Hernanadez of Columbia in lightweight category turned out to be the best contest of the opening day which saw first round bouts in the three categories of 51kg, 57kg and 60kg. The Australian got a 3-2 split verdict from the judges.
In the first round, the Aussie got 10 points each from three judges while in the second, she just about managed to get the nod from two of the five judges.
What made the difference was the third round when she got full points from four judges to progress to the second round.
Originally hailing from Sweden, Stridsman moved to Australia at the age of 19 for further studies. But boxing became a passion for her when she turned 23.
In 2015, she earned her Australian citizenship and won a gold medal in the Australian National Championships.
Stridsman tore her Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in a freak accident during a bout in Poland two months before the Australian team trials for CWG.
The 31-year-old, often referred to as the ‘Comeback Queen’, underwent a tricky operation and her damaged knee tendon was replaced with an Achilles tendon from a corpse. She defied all odds, took part in the Gold Coast CWG and went on to win a gold medal.
In another bout of the day, pintsized Kazakh Zhaina Shekerbekova showed her tactical superiority against Russia’s European champion Svetlana Soluianova with a shocking 5-0 win in the 51kg.
Algeria’s Ouidad Sefouh moved down to the flyweight (51kg) just before the start of the Women’s World Boxing Championships and she used her longer reach against Germany’s Ursula Gottlob to win her opening contest.
Switzerland’s Sandra Brugger beat Indonesia’s Asian Games England’s Ebonie Jones (in blue) in a bout against Indonesia’s Ainum Azizah in women’s 51 kg category during AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships, at IG Stadium in New Delhi on Thursday PTI
bronze medallist Huswatun Hasanah to set up a second round clash against India’s 2006 edition gold medallist L Sarita Devi in 60kg.
Somalia’s Ramla Ali (57kg) came with a lot of expectations after winning national titles in England, where she stayed for many years after flee- ing from Mogadishu during the civil war. However she lost in the first round against Doaa Toujani of Morocco.
“I am disappointed, I thought I had some clear punches on my opponent but that was not enough for me to win,” said Ali who was cheered by Somalians and Indians from the stands.
Meanwhile, a tough road awaits veteran L Sarita Devi and rookie Manisha Moun as they open India’s campaign at the championships.
The 36-year-old Sarita, who got a first round bye in 60kg category, faces Diana Sandra Brugger of Switzerland in the second round.
Brugger had defeated Huswatun Hasanah of Indonesia in the first round as the 10th edition of the championships began at the K D Jhadav Stadium here on Thursday.
Sarita, who won a gold in the 2006 edition held here, has come into the tournament after winning a bronze each in the India Open and Silesian Women’s Boxing championship in Gliwice, Poland this year. Her opponent Brugger, on the other hand, does not have a formidable reputation. But, it will not be an easy outing for the Manipuri as her opponent has been an experienced campaigner having taken part in World Championships since 2008.
“After 12 years I am getting the opportunity to win another gold and I am fully prepared for the challenge. My opponent from Switzerland is a good fighter and I have seen the videos of her previous bouts. I will fight to win,” Sarita said.
Sarita, seeded fourth in the tournament, would be searching for her second gold at home but to do that she will have to beat the likes of defending world champion Yang Wenlu of China and Rio Olympics bronze medallist Anastasia Beliakova of Russia. They have been clubbed with Sarita in the lower half of the draw.
On the other hand, the 20-year old Manisha (54kg) faces 2016 World Championships bronze medallist Christina Cruz of the United States in her first round bout.
Cruz is also a bronze medallist at the 2012 World Championships but Manisha was not perturbed by her opponent’s reputation.