Jokinen and Lakatos are the heroes of Day1 at the 70th Bornemissza Youth & Junior Memorial Tournament
20 May 2021The Bornemissza Youth & Junior Memorial Tournament started in Eger, Hungary where 38 contests were scheduled in the opening day of the event. Among them 16 scheduled in the youth age group and 22 in the junior part of the tournament. Finland’s Viivi Jokinen and Hungary’s new youth talent Kevin Lakatos were the heroes of Day1.
The Bornemissza Youth & Junior Memorial Tournament is one of the oldest European competitions, this is the 70th edition in the event’s history. The competition was named after a Hungarian lieutenant, Gergely Bornemissza who supported the successful defence of the Castle of Eger during the Siege in 1552.
The safety of all participants, the continuous medical checks, the social distancing, the hygienic preparations, wearing masks and all of the health controls are the responsibility of the local organizers in Hungary to avoid any new Covid-19 cases during the Bornemissza Youth & Junior Memorial Tournament. The Technical Delegate of the competition is Mr. Dragoljub Radovic who officiated also the AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships.
The bout of the day
Finland’s junior girl, Viivi Jokinen competed international events in Sweden, in Denmark, and in her homeland in the recent two years. The 16-year-old Finnish talent had to meet in the first day of boxing with Hungary’s Petra Kovacs who competed also in the previous EUBC Championships. Jokinen started their contest better in the first round but Kovacs adopted the rhythm of the bout which contained several attacks. Finland’s new pride was still enough fresh in the last round to beat the experienced Hungarian in Eger.
The surprise of the day
Following his experiences from smaller international tournaments, France’s Babacar Diarra reached the quarter-finals at the 2020 EUBC Junior European Boxing Championships in Sofia. The 17-year-old French joined to the youth age group this January and arrived to Eger as one of the favourites. Diarra had difficulties already in the first round against Hungary’s Istvan Enekes Youth Memorial Tournament winner Kevin Lakatos. The Hungarian increased the tempo and the French ringside abandoned their light heavyweight (81kg) contest in the third round.
The Round-Up
Cyprus’ new sensation Laila Abdullatif claimed gold medal at the 2019 EUBC European Schoolgirls Boxing Championships which was her nation’s first ever title in the continental level. The Cyprian girl is now a junior boxer who has done a successful debut at the light flyweight (48kg) against Hungary’s Greta Bojti. The local boxer tried to organize her defence against Abdullatif but the Cyprian found her weak points and advanced to the next round.
Romania’s Daniel Girleanu won the 2020 EUBC European Junior Boxing Championships in Sofia which was a surprise from the young talent. His elder brother qualified for the Tokyo Olympic Games while Daniel competes in the junior level of the Bornemissza Memorial Tournament. He moved up to the bantamweight (54kg) but he was faster and stronger than Switzerland’s Maxime Volkov in his debuting contest in Eger.
Hungary’s Levente Olah claimed bronze medal at the 2019 EUBC European Schoolboys Boxing Championships in Tbilisi and he had to wait for his comeback to the international stage nearly two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The 16-year-old Hungarian enjoyed his return so much and spent only a short time in the ring against Finland’s Leevi Salo. The Northern European was demoralized due to the energetic Hungarian attacks and the referee confirmed Olah’s quick RSC triumph.
Poland’s Artur Proksa came from a boxing family, his father was member of the national team in the past. The Polish boxer has got experiences from many international competitions and he opened his campaign with a success at the lightweight (60kg). Belgium’s Lorenzo Campaseo is a newcomer in the international competitions but he was competitive for the Polish boxer. The final verdict was split decision in the favour of Proksa who has done a great finish in their meeting.
