The Golden Gloves of Vojvodina Youth Tournament recently took place in Serbia, which has hosted several boxing events in 2014, with this youth event one of the most important of the year.

Held in the Northern region of the country in the city of Subotic, the Golden Gloves of Vojvodina Youth Tournament was scheduled for men’s and women’s boxers, and a record number of nations sent their athletes to Subotica.

This event was one of the last chances for quota holders to prepare against strong opponents prior to the upcoming Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games.

Athlete of the tournament
Uzbekistan’s Kozimbek Mardonov won the ASBC Asian Junior Continental Championships in 2013, and bagged his second continental title in the ASBC Asian Youth Championships in Bangkok in January.

The Uzbek Middleweight class (75 kg) boxer was one of the youngest athletes in the AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships in Sofia in April, but he achieved a bronze medal and a quota to the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympics.

Mardonov turns 17 in December, and started with a great scalp in Subotica as he eliminated Australia’s AIBA Junior World Champion Clay Waterman.

He continued his form with a triumph over France’s EUBC European Junior Continental Champion Louis Toutin, before he stopped Serbia’s own Miralem Ahmeti in the gold medal bout.

Team of the tournament
India sent a huge delegation of athletes to the Golden Gloves of Vojvodina Youth Tournament, and achieved the first place among the participating, teams bagging four gold medals in Subotica.

Two of their women’s athletes reached the top of the podium, in AIBA Women’s Youth World Championships silver medallist Nikhat Zareen who stopped Hungary’s Judit Ferencz, and 17-year-old Shashi Kala who triumphed over another Hungarian boxer, Nations Women’s Youth Cup winner Alexandra Bugyik.

Leichombam Bhimchand Singh and Prayag Chauhan were also successful gold medalists.

Singh defeated all of his rivals in the Light Flyweight class (49 kg) including Azerbaijan’s Rufat Huseynov, and US boxer Thomas Blumenfeld in the gold medal bout.

ASBC Asian Junior Continental Champion Prayag Chauhan defeated Turkey’s Youth Olympian Furkan Avci who claimed a gold in the 2012 EUBC European Junior Continental Championships.

Surprise of the tournament
Russia’s Levan Khasaya was a reserve boxer in the AIBA Youth World Championships, but this time he received the right to fight in an international event.

The 18-year-old Flyweight class (52 kg) boxer eliminated experienced US athlete Antonio Vargas in the semi-final, and his hand was raised after the final against Uzbekistan’s AIBA Youth World Championships silver medallist Sulaymon Latipo via split decision.

Ones to watch in the future
Armenia’s AIBA Women’s Youth World Champion 17-year-old Anush Grigoryan secured a further gold medal after beating India’s new hope Pravish Chanu in the final of the Flyweight class (51 kg).

Sweden’s AIBA Women’s Youth World Champion Agnes Alexiusson also won her weight class in Subotica, where she was too strong for Kazakhstan’s Youth National Champion Nazym Ishchanova.

Both of these winners also have gold medal expectations for the upcoming Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games as well.

In the men’s part of the competition, Serbia’s Youth National Champion Milan Osadkovski shocked the strong Russian boxer Zafir Chochayev in the semi-finals, and demonstrated his power in the final over Australia’s rising hope Liam Wilson.

Stat/fact of the tournament
The 32nd edition was the biggest ever Golden Gloves of Vojvodina Youth Tournament in the history of the competition.

This edition was affectionately called a small Youth World Championships, as 24 nations competed for the medals.

United States of America and Australia competed in the event for the very first time, while India, Uzbekistan, Tunisia and Kazakhstan also took part in Serbia, as non-European nations which meant that all of the AIBA Confederations took part in the tournament.

Quote of the tournament
‘I felt pretty good in the tournament, but I have been training hard for the upcoming EUBC European Women’s Youth Championships and for the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games, so I was not in top shape in Subotica. In spite of this, I am satisfied with my performance and the tournament has grown over the years, so it was really great to see many different nations and fighting boxers in Serbia,” said Sweden’s Agnes Alexiusson after her gold medal in the event.

Gold medal winners in the Golden Gloves of Vojvodina Youth Tournament
Women’s 48 kg: Angelika Lukas, Kazakhstan
Women’s 51 kg: Anush Grigoryan, Armenia
Women’s 54 kg: Nikhat Zareen, India
Women’s 57 kg: Aigerim Oshakbay, Kazakhstan
Women’s 60 kg: Agnes Alexiusson, Sweden
Women’s 64 kg: Karina Ibragimova, Kazakhstan
Women’s 69 kg: Shashi Kala, India
Women’s 75 kg: Caitlin Parker, Australia
Men’s 49 kg: Leichombam Bhimchand Singh, India
Men’s 52 kg: Levan Khasaya, Russia
Men’s 56 kg: Hector Tanajara, United States
Men’s 56 kg “B”: Abdulkhay Sharakhmatov, Uzbekistan
Men’s 60 kg: Milan Osadkovski, Serbia
Men’s 64 kg: Ivan Kozlovskiy, Russia
Men’s 64 kg “B”: Prayag Chauhan, India
Men’s 69 kg: Radzhab Radzhabov, Russia
Men’s 69 kg “B”: Christopher Fataki Bobozo, France
Men’s 75 kg: Luka Plantic, Croatia
Men’s 75 kg “B”: Kozimbek Mardonov, Uzbekistan
Men’s 81 kg: Islam Tekeyev, Russia
Men’s 91 kg: Toni Filipi, Croatia
Men’s +91 kg: Muhamedali Tahirov, Azerbaijan

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