Highlights of the ASBC National Federations – Iraq’s golden boy Ismail Khalil Salman won the Asian Championships three-times

The Asian Boxing Confederation introduces the best moments of its affiliated Asian National Federations launching a new PR campaign, the Highlights of the ASBC National Federations. Iraq’s gold era in boxing were in the second part of the 1970s and the 1980s when the country achieved Asian titles. Their best boxer Ismail Khalil Salman won the Asian Boxing Championships three-times in 1983, in 1985 and in 1989.

Iraq had a bright boxing history, our sport was born in the Sumerian cities at the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC in the modern area of Iraq. The country became independent from the United Kingdom in 1932 and their boxing life was formed short after that year.

Iraq joined to the boxing events in the Rome 1960 Olympic Games where the country attended with two boxers in Italy’s capital. Iraq competed in the boxing tournaments of the Olympic Games altogether nine-times since 1960. Farouk Jawad was quarter-finalist in the Moscow 1980 Olympic Games which is the country’s best performance. Waheed Abderredha was their last Olympian boxer who qualified for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Iraq achieved one silver and three bronze medals in the boxing events of the Asian Games since 1978. Their first bronze medal was captured by Jabbar Rabat Intisar at the welterweight (67kg) of the Bangkok 1978 Asian Games. Ismail Khalil Salman advanced to the final of the heavyweight (91kg) in the New Delhi 1982 Asian Games and achieved silver medal. Farouk Jawad bagged bronze in 1982 while Saeed Shabbot Mary earned bronze medal in 1986.

Sadie Jabbar Mohammad was their first medallist in the history of the Asian Boxing Championships who earned silver in the 1975 edition in Yokohama. Iraq achieved four bronze medals in the Jakarta 1977 Asian Boxing Championships. Their next top performance was six bronze medals in the Bombay 1980 Asian Boxing Championships in their best era when Iraq became one of the leading nations in the continent.

Ismail Khalil Salman was three-time Asian Champion in the 1980s and became Iraq’s most successful boxer in their history. He claimed bronze medal in 1980 and won his first continental title in the Nara 1983 Asian Boxing Championships. Ismail Khalil Salman defended his throne in 1985 and won his third Asian title in the 1989 Beijing edition. Following their training camps in various nations, Iraq attended at the Asian & Oceanian Olympic Boxing Qualifying Event in Amman but their boxers were not able to get a quota place yet for the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games. Iraq will have the second chance to qualify boxers at the World Olympic Boxing Qualifying Event next year.

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