Afghanistan Junior National Championships

ASBC Asian Junior Championships bronze medallist Mesawer Kakar wins in the Afghanistan Junior National Championships

Afghanistan is a developing nation in the Asian continent which has got the same political issues as in Syria but boxing survived in the country and the national federation is trying to organize events to raise the experiences of their boxers. After the Kabul National Selection Tournament they were able to organize the Afghanistan Junior National Championships.
Afghanistan could send five boxers to the 2015 ASBC Asian Confederation Junior Boxing Championships to Tashkent where two of their boxers not only won contests but achieved bronze medals in the strong competition in Uzbekistan. The country also claimed medals in the Asian University Boxing Championships in Dushanbe, Tajikistan last month where one of their woman boxer Laila Sekandari was finalist in the event.
Boxers who were born in 2000 and in 2001 were eligible to compete in the Afghanistan Junior National Championships where eleven winners have been crowned at the 46 kg, 48 kg, 50 kg, 52 kg, 54 kg, 57 kg, 60 kg, 63 kg, 66 kg, 70 kg and 80 kg. All of the five zones of Afghanistan competed in the Junior National Championships where there were big rivalries between the teams. Zone 4 became the most successful in the Afghanistan Junior National Boxing Championships as five of their boxers claimed gold in Kabul.
The first gold medal of the Afghanistan Junior National Boxing Championships was achieved by Sefatullah Mashal of Zone 1 who defeated Kenan Afghan in the final of the Pinweight class (46 kg). Zone 5 achieved only one title in the national event in Kabul where their top junior boxer Ezatullah Maref was able to beat Hassibullah Pashtoni in the gold medal contest of the Light Flyweight class (48 kg).
Mesawer Kakar was only 15 when he travelled to the ASBC Asian Confederation Junior Boxing Championships to Tashkent, Uzbekistan one year ago but he could beat Tajikistan’s top junior boxer Djamshedjon Gafurov in the important quarter-final which meant he claimed bronze in the continental event. Afghanistan’s best junior boxer was too strong for all of his rivals in the Junior National Championships where he defeated Selab Bagrami in the final of the Flyweight class (50 kg) by large margin of difference.
Muhammad Masoom also arrived to the Junior National Championships from Zone 4 as Mesawer Kakar and secured the same top position in the event. The 16-year-old talent defeated Nasrat Sehat Ama of Zone 3 in the final of the Light Bantamweight class (52 kg). The twin brothers of the silver medallist boxer Najeb Sehat Ama and Shuaib Sehat Ama also bagged silver medals in the competition at Bantamweight class (54 kg) and at the Featherweight class (57 kg) following their close losses to Saeed Murtaza and Abed Taselat.
Seliman Afghan achieved Zone 2’s first success in the national event following his triumph over Hassib Jan in the final of the Lightweight class (60 kg). Ahmadullah Kabuly defeated the fourth twin Sehat Ama twin brother Tawfiq in the final of the Light Welterweight class (63 kg) while Ahmad Naweed (66 kg), Kelash Karmand (70 kg) and Zahubullah Jan (80 kg) secured the last three titles in the event.
Afghanistan’s next appearance is coming in the World Olympic Qualification Event which to be scheduled in Baku, Azerbaijan between 16-25 June while the country is planning to send their best junior boxers to the Children of Asia Games to Yakutsk, Russia next month.

List of the winners in Afghanistan Junior National Championships

46 kg: Sefatullah Mashal
48 kg: Ezatullah Maref
50 kg: Mesawer Kakar
52 kg: Muhammad Masoom
54 kg: Saeed Murtaza
57 kg: Abed Taselat
60 kg: Seliman Afghan
63 kg: Ahmadullah Kabuly
66 kg: Ahmad Naweed
70 kg: Kelash Karmand
80 kg: Zahubullah Jan