Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania shared the male gold medals in Sofia

The 13 men’s finals were held in the EUBC Junior European Boxing Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria where the continental event finished with impressive contests. Russia’s Ismail Magomadov won the bout of the day while his fellow Sergei Koldenkov proved his impressive skills once again.

The Russians earned six gold medals in the men’s part of the continental event but the Ukrainians are also impressed with their four titles. Host Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania each bagged one title in Sofia where altogether 17 nations achieved at least one medal.

The re-scheduled competition moved to Bulgaria’ capital where all of the requirements, experiences and professional organizational team are waiting for the participants. Boxers who were born in 2004 and in 2005 are eligible to attend in the EUBC Junior European Confederation Boxing Championships in Sofia.

The following nations are attending in the EUBC Junior European Boxing Championships Sofia 2020: Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Israel, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and Ukraine.

The European Boxing Confederation’s medical and safety rules are very strict in the whole competition as it was followed in Montenegro. 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 Bulgaria to avoid any new Covid-19 cases during the EUBC Junior European Confederation Boxing Championships.

The bout of the day

France’s Yojerlin Cesar has been preparing to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and the EUBC Junior European Boxing Championships is his first big international challenge on that road. The 16-year-old French boxer was a hard target for his final opponent, Russia’s EUBC European Schoolboys Champion Ismail Magomadov in the first round. The well-experienced Russian turned up the heat in the second round in the battle of the southpaw boxers. Magomadov had a hard job against the taller French in one of the most difficult finals of the eighth competition day. The final verdict was split decision in the favour of the Russian boxer who claimed the title of the middleweight (75kg).

The surprise of the day

Russia’s Aleksei Starodubtsev claimed silver medal at the 2019 EUBC European Junior Boxing Championships in Galati one and half year ago. The 16-year-old Russian moved from the flyweight (50kg) to the featherweight (57kg) since that event but he was the top favourite of his new category in Sofia. Starodubtsev amazed during his road to the finals but he was not able to repeat his previous performance in the title contest against Ukraine’s Vitalii Hrabovskyi. The 16-year-old Ukrainian could follow his well-built strategy in the final of the event and defeated the main favourite.

The Round-up

Following Moldova’s Ilie Argatu’s unexpected success at the light flyweight (48kg), Stepan Shalapanov of Russia tried to use his longer reach against Romania’s Ionut Chiriac in the final of the light bantamweight (52kg). The Russian boxer was a new addition to their junior national team but he had to box over his previous limit to beat the talented Romanian. Chiriac used attacking tactic well enough against the taller Russian but Shalapanov was able to keep his advantage until the end of the final.

Bulgaria’s EUBC European Schoolboys Boxing Championships silver medallist Sergi Vladoyanu proved top quality of boxing until the finals of the light middleweight (70kg). The 16-year-old Bulgarian, whose nickname is the Romanian, tried to keep Ukraine’s Oleksandr Balabin long in the first round. The Ukrainian overcame Vladoyanu in the attacks mostly in the second round while the Bulgarian also reached his opponent in that period. Balabin opened the third round with impressive rhythm and his high number of shots controlled their final contest in Sofia.

Russia’s Daniyal Tuktubayev achieved several great results in the national level and won the Aleksandr Aksenov U15 Memorial Tournament one year ago. The heavyweight (80kg) boxer dominated all of his contests in Sofia and he was the favourite against Czech Republic’s David Polak in the final. The Czech boxer had a strong tactical start in the first round but Tuktubayev’s ringside was able to manage the great return in the second period. The Astrakhan-based Russian used his longer reach better and won his career highlight, a continental title in Sofia.

Bulgaria’s second finalist Kristiyan Tsvetanov began his boxing career five years ago and he had already more than 50 contests during his career. The Psycho, which is his nickname, controlled his contests during the final but his last rival was a technically well-equipped boxer, Russia’s Rasul Magomedov. The 15-year-old Bulgarian started the final in excellent rhythm and took the lead on the scorecards after two minutes. Magomedov felt also the fighting distance in the second round but Tsvetanov’s stamina was enough to win the title of the pinweight (46kg) in Sofia.

Ukraine’s Aider Abduraimov amazed during his road to the finals of the bantamweight (54kg) in Sofia where he met with another promising star Romania’s Daniel Girleanu. The Ukrainian Junior National Champion overcame his younger Romanian opponent in the attacks and his jabs controlled the first round. Girleanu, whose elder brother Cosmin is already a Tokyo Olympian, increased his rhythm in the second round and he was able to turn back the final in Sofia against a well-technician rival.

Ukraine’s Oleksandr Yarovyi also proved seriously strong performance in the previous stages of the EUBC Junior European Boxing Championships. He was patient in the first round of the final against Bulgaria’s 15-year-old Toni Sotirov and waited for the best counter-attacking moments. The taller Ukrainian moved ahead more in the second round and he looked more fresh than his younger Bulgarian rival in third. Yarovyi claimed the gold medal in the continental event while Sotirov could be a junior star in the 2021 EUBC Junior European Boxing Championships.

Russia’s two-time EUBC European Schoolboys Champion Sergei Koldenkov is their best junior boxer in their current national team who defeated all of his international bouts. The 16-year-old Russian used his excellent technique to keep the distance against Latvia’s lone finalist Nikita Gorbunovs who moved ahead from the first seconds. The Baltic boxer had a brave attempt to beat Koldenkov in the final of the welterweight (66kg) but his technical skills were not enough to make this happen in Sofia.