THE ACTION BEGINS
Welsh boxers make an impression at the Tammer tournament in Finland
GB competed in their first competition of the year at the Tammer tournament, which finished on Sunday (January 23) in Finland.
British boxers finished with five gold medals, with the Welsh athletes particularly impressing. Twin brothers Garan and Ioan
Croft were both victorious. Lightmiddleweight Garan Croft beat host nation boxer Hannes Tolonen on a unanimous decision in the 71kgs final.
Ioan Croft took a points win over England rival Harvey Lambert in the semi-final before he then outscored Norwegian boxer
Martin Skogheim on a split decision.
“Good start to 2022 with a gold medal in the Tammer tournament in Finland. Two good performances beating England in the semi-finals and then beating Norway in the final,” Ioan said.
“Massive thank you to my coaches for their support.
There was another England versus Wales clash in the 80kgs final when new GB squad member
Taylor Bevan boxed Aaron Bowen. Bowen had just won his second England Boxing Elite championship in December but Bevan picked up a victory here, edging him out on a split decision. Both won their semifinals, with Bowen beating the Netherlands’ Gradus Kraus and Bevan unanimously outpointing Lithuania’s Robertas Liorancas.
“Brilliant start to the year,” Bevan stated. “I was also awarded Best Boxer of the tournament. A huge thank you to everyone who supports me, including the Welsh boxing coaches and team.
“I’ve had a brilliant trip and thank you to everyone at home for the supportive messages.” London featherweight John
O’meara won gold at 57kgs, unanimously defeating Finland’s
Lassi Rissanen in their final. O’meara had begun his tournament with a unanimous win over Wales’
Billy Unsworth.
In the 63.5kgs finals Wales’ Romeo Costa beat GB’S Joe Tyers on a unanimous decision too. GB super-heavyweight Courtney Bennett finished with a bronze medal. Lithuania’s Jonas Jazevicius stopped him the third round of their 92&kgs semi-final.