The year’s first Elite and Youth Women’s international boxing competition drew to a close in the Serbian city of Vrba on Sunday, with the tournament marking an important change in format for the women’s sport.
Following universal approval of the rule change at last December’s Executive Committee meeting, women’s bouts will now follow the men’s format, comprising three rounds of three minutes, and the boxers adapted well as the sixth Nations Cup delivering 16 superb new Youth and Elite champions.
The Youth gold medals were shared between four countries, with Bulgarian Emi-Mari Todorova (48kg), China’s Lisai Yu (64kg) and Hungary’s Adrienn Yuhasz (+81kg) sharing top spot on the podium with three Russian champions, Liubov Sharapova (51kg), Valeriia Rodionova (54kg) and Anastasiia Shamonova (75kg).
The Kazakhstan team then showed just how far women’s boxing has come in the country as it dominated the upper categories of the elite competition, winning golds at the 60kg, 64kg, 69kg, 75kg, 81kg and +81kg. Neeraj (51kg) also won gold as the resurgent India team secured four finalists, before the Serbian Milena Matovic (64kg) topped the podium at the end of an impressive tournament.
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