A total of 65 African boxers including all 48 male pugilists have been eliminated in the 1st World Olympic Qualification tournament in Busto-Arsizio, Italy.
The latest victims are Morocco’s Africa featherweight champion, Soulaimane Soumghouli who lost 4-1 to Irish Commonwealth Games champion, Jude Gallagher, Angola’s Pedro Gomes was beaten 3-2 by China’s Ping Lyu and Namibia’s Tryagain Ndevelo lost 5-0 to Columbia’s Landazury Gonzalez, all the three in the last 16 featherweight division on Sunday, March 10.
With 65 boxers defeated including all the 48 men who entered the qualifiers, Africa is now relying on three female boxers to save face in today’s (March 11) quarter-finals.
Tunisia’s bantamweight Islem Ferchichi takes on Vietnam’s Vo Thi Kim Anh, Cape Verde’s Africa welterweight champion Ivanusa Moreira (pictured) battles Italy’s 2019 world silver medallist Angela Carini and Nigeria’s Africa middleweight silver medallist Patricia Mbata fights Poland’s 2019 and 2023 European Games bronze medallist Elzbieta Wojcik.
Moreira is brimming with confidence ahead of her tough encounter with the Italian boxer.
“I know it will be a hard fight but I am very confident of victory, I’ll do my best,” she told me in a telephone interview from Italy.
“This qualification means a lot to me, to my family and to my country.
I need all my gas with me, and positive vibes.”
Africa entered 68 boxers – 48 men and 20 women – from 19 countries in the Italy Olympic qualifiers.
That only three boxers – out of 68 – are remaining in the tournament speaks volumes on the standards of boxing in Africa. So far 18 African boxers have qualified for the Paris Olympics. They made it during last year’s Africa Olympic qualifiers in Dakar, Senegal. The Africa Boxing Confederation (AFBC) has 50 affiliated member countries.
Credit: AFBC Communications
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