Teenagers as Ruslan Abdullayev and Jakhongir Zokirov earned gold medals at the Uzbekistan Elite National Championships
The thirteen male finals were held in the Uzbekistan Elite National Championships where several surprises have been delivered by the younger boxers. The competition venue was the Universal Sports Palace in Uzbekistan’s capital in Tashkent. The 19-year-old Ruslan Abdullayev won the Best Boxer Trophy but AIBA Youth World Champion Jakhongir Zokirov also earned his first elite title.
As in the Uzbekistan Women’s Elite National Championships, Mr. Andrew Caulfield of Scotland and Mr. Igor Biletskyi worked as neutral Evaluators in the men’s part of the competition. The management of the Uzbekistan Boxing Federation invited eight neutral AIBA 3-stars Referees & Judges to officiate the event and give fair play for all of the elite participants.
Altogether 286 male boxers attended in the Uzbekistan Men’s Elite National Championships from all over the country. The official thirteen male weight classes were in action at the Uzbekistan Men’s Elite National Championships: minimumweight (48kg), flyweight (51kg), bantamweight (54kg), featherweight (57kg), lightweight (60kg), light welterweight (63.5kg), welterweight (67kg), light middleweight (71kg), middleweight (75kg), light heavyweight (80kg), cruiserweight (86kg), heavyweight (92kg) and super heavyweight (+92kg).
Boxers who were born between 1981 and 2003 were eligible to attend in the Uzbekistan Men’s Elite National Championships in 2021. Many of their young hopes met each other to get the place in the national team for the upcoming ASBC Asian U22 Boxing Championships which is scheduled to be hosted in Tashkent on January 20-30, 2022.
Bukhara’s Asilbek Jalilov and Ferghana’s Shodiyorjon Melikuziyev advanced to the final of the minimumweight (48kg) in Tashkent. The latter was the favourite of their final but Jalilov worked well enough to win the smallest weight class in the Nationals. The second gold medal was achieved by Bukhara’s 25-year-old Mironshokh Ibragimov who earned the title of the flyweight (51kg) against Khudjanazar Nortoziyev.
Tashkent region’s Dilshod Abduvaliyev and AIBA Youth World Champion Shakhzod Muzaffarov both are still teenagers and advanced to the final of the men’s bantamweight (54kg) following their successes over Sodirbek Kamolmirzayev and Oybek Jurayev in the semi-finals. Muzaffarov arrived to the competition with perfect pedigree but Abduvaliyev caused a top sensation and won the title of the category.
Shunkor Abdurasulov achieved silver medal at the Jakarta 2018 Asian Games but in the recent years he was not able to repeat that performance. The currently 23-year-old boxer moved down to the featherweight (57kg) and impressed in the National Championships. Abdurasulov was too experienced for Hasanboy Latibakhunov in the final of the category and returned to the top of the podium.
ASBC Asian Youth Boxing Championships silver medallist Khurshidbek Rasuljonov was a 20-year-old lightweight (60kg) boxer who worked hard in the final against Faryozbek Khakimov to take his first elite title. Tashkent region’s Ruslan Abdullayev is only 19-year-old but he has got already four years of international experiences but his success over CISM Military World Boxing Championships silver medallist Mujibullo Tursunov was a big surprise in the final of the light welterweight (63.5kg).
Two boxers from the next generation advanced to the final of the welterweight (67kg), ASBC Asian Junior Champion 20-year-old Javlonbek Yuldashev and AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships bronze medallist Jakhongir Rakhmonov. The two youngsters knew each other well enough from previous competitions but this time Yuldashev worked better and used the perfect tactic against Rakhmonov.
Azizbek Tojiyev is another strong teenage hope who moved up to the light middleweight (71kg) and won the final over Asian Games winner and ASBC Asian Champion Bobo-Usmon Baturov. Bukhara’s Saidjamshid Jafarov is the defending ASBC Asian Champion at the middleweight (75kg) and he was able to beat Andizhan’s Abdulaziz Abdupattayev in the final. ASBC Asian Junior Champion 18-year-old Login Petrov and ASBC Asian Youth Champion Sukhrobjon Kayimov earned the bronze medals in this strong weight class.
Bukhara’s Odiljon Aslonov moved up to the light heavyweight (80kg) and represented Uzbekistan at the AIBA Men’s Elite World Boxing Championships in Belgrade. The 26-year-old boxer met in the final of the event with Yekaterinburg 2019 AIBA World Boxing Championships silver medallist Dilshodbek Ruzmetov but Aslonov managed to win this top contest. Tashkent’s Youth Olympic Games bronze medallist Timur Merzhanov found back his glorious days and won the new cruiserweight (86kg) in the National Championships after beating Jurabek Toshtemirov.
Ferghana’s Jamshidjon Abdullayev was slightly better than Dzhizak’s 21-year-old former youth star Javokhir Togaymurodov and earned the gold medal at the heavyweight (92kg). Dzhizak’s AIBA Youth World Champion and ASBC Asian Youth Champion Jakhongir Zokirov is one of the biggest talents in the whole globe at the super heavyweight (+92kg) and the 18-year-old boxer bagged his first elite national title. Zokirov eliminated Shokhjakhon Abdullayev in the semi-finals and continued his winning path against Khorezm’s Jamshid Hudayberganov in the 13th final.
List of the winners in the Uzbekistan Men’s Elite National Championships
48kg: Asilbek Jalilov 51kg: Mironshokh Ibragimov 54kg: Dilshod Abduvaliyev 57kg: Shunkor Abdurasulov 60kg: Khurshidbek Rasuljonov 63.5kg: Ruslan Abdullayev 67kg: Javlonbek Yuldashev 71kg: Azizbek Tojiyev 75kg: Saidjamshid Jafarov 80kg: Odiljon Aslonov 86kg: Timur Merzhanov 92kg: Jamshidjon Abdullayev +92kg: Jakhongir Zokirov
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