Six Chinese finalists in the Boxam Tournament in Murcia

The Boxam Tournament is a traditional European boxing event in Spain which is holding in Murcia this week. Among the Asian National Federations China decided to send a team to the Boxam Tournament this time and their elite squad, which has been preparing to the Asian Games, showed top form in the semi-finals. Six of the Chinese boxers advanced to the final of the Boxam Tournament in Murcia.
China’s Wu Zhonglin has got experiences in the World Series Boxing and won several matches against big names in the recent years. The Chinese light flyweight (49kg) boxer used his strong experiences against Spain’s teenager Angel Amin Boughaba and controlled all of the rounds in Murcia. The nine-years older Chinese boxer felt the tempo and the distance therefore his hand was raised after the final gong. Wu will now meet for the gold medal with Russia’s Youth Champion Volodya Mnatsakanyan tomorrow.
China’s Hu Jianguan was bronze medallist in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and returned to the national squad after an injury. The 25-year-old flyweight (52kg) boxer proved his excellent footwork once again and controlled the first round against Spain’s Juan Carlos Jimenez. The Chinese boxer used his best fighting distance in the contest and won his semi-final by unanimous decision. Hu Jianguan needs only one further step to be crowned in the Boxam Tournament but his next opponent will be Spain’s EUBC European Confederation U22 Boxing Championships silver medallist Gabriel Escobar.
Two-time Olympian Maimaiti Tuersunqiong returned to the national team after four years of break. The Chinese welterweight (69kg) boxer eliminated Denmark’s Islam Zaypulayev and Belgium’s Albert Pegba Bikoko in the previous rounds. The Xinjiang-based Chinese boxer had to meet with Hungary’s WSB boxer Andras Vadasz and their first round was a tactical one with less punches. The Chinese boxer switched his stance in the second round but received punches from the Hungarian side. The Chinese boxer had world class footwork and finally he could win their difficult contest in Murcia which was the early gold medal contest.
Chen Daxiang is a newcomer in the Chinese national elite team but he was more than competitive in the semi-final against Russia’s EUBC European Youth Champion Sergei Murashev who attended also in the St. Petersburg 2016 AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships. The Chinese boxer used his longer reach and moved more on feet from the second round and surprisingly he was able to beat his Russian rival by split decision.
France’s Soheb Bouafia eliminated one of the main favourites at the heavyweight (91kg) Hungary’s former EUBC European Junior Champion Adam Hamori and met with China’s WSB boxer Wang Zhibao in the semi-final. The Chinese boxer was more experienced than his French rival but he had difficulties in their contest to find the best distance. Wang landed a few good punches in the right time and defeated Bouafia in a narrow contest.
China’s super heavyweight (+91kg) boxer Mu Haipeng was involved to the national team in 2015 and those experiences paid off when he met with Spain’s Martino Rio Gonzalez. The 23-year-old Chinese boxer knocked down his European opponent in the second round but Gonzalez was able to continue their fight. Mu worked more in the third round against his tiring opponent and advanced to the final of the competition.