Two Mongolian Boxers Still in the Ring

{mosimage}ONLY two of the seven Mongolian boxers at the world championships in Chicago are still in the fray. Altogether 623 boxers from over 100 countries came to this last major international tournament before the Olympic Games.

ONLY two of the seven Mongolian boxers at the world championships in Chicago are still in the fray. Altogether 623 boxers from over 100 countries came to this last major international tournament before the Olympic Games. Almost everybody in the Mongolian team had won a medal at the Asian championship held in Ulaanbaatar earlier this year, and such an early exit for five of them was not quite expected It is still early days in the tournament which began on October 23. At the close of the sixth day’s bouts, boxers from 55 countries have won their rounds, while the rest are still waiting to strike luck. At that stage Mongolia is sharing the 23rd place with Japan. Both countries had 6 victories in the preliminary rounds. The USA is at the top of the ranking with 17 victories while China and Russia are at the second and third places with 16 and 15 respectively.

In the 48-kg section Asian champion P.Serdamba faced European champion Ayrapetyan David of Russia on the third day of the tournament. Serdamba disappointed his fans and lost somewhat tamely 7:34. The Russian improved with every round and the last two rounds were very one-sided, with Serdamba not troubling David at all. There are 37 boxers in this section, many of them medalists at Olympic and other important international competitions In the 51-kg flyweight section L.Zorigtbaatar faced Puerto Rico’s Arroyo McWilliams who had won the gold at the last Pan-American Games. The first three rounds were evenly matched, both boxers using their experience well. But in the last round McWilliams had a burst of energy which gave Zorigtbaatar no chance. The Puerto Rican’s 26:10 victory was decisive and deserved. A total of 47 boxers are competing for medals in this section.

It was left to E.Badar-Uugan in the 54-kg section to turn the tables on another Pan American Games medalist. Atwell Clive of Guyana, who had won the bronze there, found Badar-Uugan too hot to handle and went down 8:25. Badar-Uugan’s next opponent was the Italian Parrinello Vittorio. Both were watchful all through and neither took chances. Finally Badar-Uugan’s experience won the day, though the margin of his victory, 19:14, was close. There are 51 boxers in his weight section.

Z.Enkhzorig’s first match in the 57-kg weight section was against Suarez Charly of the Philippines. There was little to choose between them and every round was closely contested. The final 13:10 score tells its own story but what matters is that the referee lifted Enkhzorig’s hand.

The Filipinos were disappointed. Their chief coach, Pat Gaspi, said, “Charly fought well despite being a first-timer in such a big event, but the Mongolian gave an excellent account of himself.” Suarez Charly himself was in tears. “I gave it all but my opponent was very slippery.” The 1.8-meter Enkhzorig stood almost 10 centimeters taller than Suarez.

However, Enkhzorig’s luck did not run any further. He ended his tournament in the next round losing to the Armenian Hovhannisyan Azat 40:20. Enkhzorig fought well in the first two rounds (8:9, and 9: 12) but inexplicably lost his steam thereafter, losing the next two 1:7 and 2:12.

U.Monkh-Erdene, who is competing in the 60-kg section, had a bye in the first round. His first match was on October 28 against Lopes Everton of Brazil. The first round was dominated by Monkh-Erdene and ended 8:2 in his favor but in the second round Lopes changes his tactics and won it 9:7. In the third round both were very careful and it was a close 6:5 for Monkh-Erdene. In the final round the Mongolian’s experience came to his rescue giving him a 5:3 advantage. The final score in his victory was 26:19. His next opponent will be Sayota Pichai, a former Asian youth champion from Thailand. The winner will be through to the quarter finals. A total of 55 boxers are competing in Monkh-Erdene’s weight category.

B.Tuvshinbat’s victory on the first day over Koivulla Jussi of Finland in the 64-kg section was one of the most comprehensive of the tournament. He won 31:1 and advanced to the next stage where he met Park Kwan Soo. In a match where neither scored too many points, the South Korean won almost by a whisker. The 13:9 score tells how close it was but it is a fair reflection of the slight edge Kwan had over Tuvshinbat. There are 64 boxers in this section.

In the 69-kg welterweight section M.Nandin-Erdene had mixed fortunes. In his first match he defeated Akavov Artur of Estonia 16:8, dominating the ring from beginning to end. His next opponent, Nurudinov Magomed of Belorussia, was a different story. Nandin-Erdene never raised any hope as he crashed 5:23 in a completely one-sided bout. There are 54 boxers competing in this weight category.

There are no Mongolian boxers in the 75-kg, 81-kg, 91-kg and above 91-kg sections.

Written by G.Ganbayar  
The UB Post