NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh athletes won two bronze medals Oct. 12 at the International Boxing Association (AIBA) Women’s World Boxing Championship 2019 in Ulan-Ude, Russia, reported Olympic.kz.
Photo credit: Sergei Shtrak.
“We can’t say that we are satisfied with the performance of the girls, because at the world championship we could not win the gold medals. The team that performed at the world championship gathered experienced athletes who participated in competitions more than once. In addition, they all became the best at the Kazakh National Championship. Since 2016, the women’s boxing team has not been able to secure the gold medal at the world championship. Now, we are waiting for a (Olympic) licenses tournament. Before that, we will work on the mistakes and make changes,” said Kazakh national female boxing team head coach Erik Algabek.
Milana Safronova, competing in the 64 kilogramme weight category, lost in the semi-finals to Italy’s Angela Carini. The fight had a very close call and the Kazakh team filed a complaint about the judgement.
“At the world cup in the semi-finals of the category up to 64 kilogrammes, Safronova had a wonderful competitive fight. The judges ruled in favour of the rival, but we thought the opposite. We sent a protest, which, unfortunately, did not affect the decision made earlier,” he noted.
Dina Islambekova, (over 81 kilogrammes), lost to China’s Xiaoli Young to take the bronze.
“In the over 81 kilogramme category, Dina Islambekova, who not so long ago moved from the junior level competition, delivered the result. At the world cup, she came in third and I think that this is a good result,” he added.
The team’s initial favourite, Nazym Kyzaybay, lost the first bout to Japan’s Namiki Tsukumi. As a result, she did not get any medal in the competition.
“In the weight up to 51 kilogrammes, Nazym Kyzaybay losing the first game was a disappointment for many. She will now throw all her energy into preparing for the (Olympic) licenses tournament. There is a lot of work ahead, including the selection,” said Algabek.
Kazakh boxers Akerke Bakhytzhan, Alua Balkibekova, Aizhan Khojabekova, Dariga Shakimova, Fariza Sholtai, Rimma Volosenko and Dina Zholaman also competed in the championship.
