Italy’s duo Simona Galassi and Marzia Davide delighted the local fans at the Riccione 2004 European Women’s Boxing Championships
03 September 2020The third edition of the European Women’s Boxing Championships was held in Riccione, Italy one year after the Pécs edition in 2004. Five of the titleholders claimed their next European titles after Pécs in Riccione where Russia’s Irina Sinetskaya became the first three-time champion. Italy’s duo Simona Galassi and Marzia Davide delighted the home crowd in Riccione.
The number of the weight classes was 13 in 2004 as in the second edition of the European Women’s Boxing Championships. The first competition day of the 2004 European Women’s Boxing Championships was October 4 in Riccione where the finals were scheduled on October 9. Following the 26 exciting semi-finals, a rest day was held on October 8 before the title contests of the European Women’s Boxing Championships.
The total number of the boxers at the 3rd European Women’s Boxing Championships was 116 in Riccione which was less by one athlete in comparison to the previous Pécs edition. The following 17 nations attended in the 2004 European Women’s Boxing Championships in Riccione: Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Turkey, and Ukraine.
Russia was the lone nation which attended with maximum number of 13 boxers in the Riccione edition. The host Italians attended with nine boxers in the continental event but Ukraine, Turkey, Hungary, and Romania also sent big delegations. Denmark, England and Ireland were the debutant nations in the 2004 European Women’s Boxing Championships.
Russia claimed three gold medals in Pécs, and their boxers repeated that performance also in Riccione. Ukraine, Romania and host Italy bagged two titles in 2004, while the remaining gold medals have been shared between Turkey, Hungary, Sweden and Denmark. Denmark has done its debut in the 2004 European Women’s Boxing Championships but the country was among the winning nations. Norway, France, Finland, Poland, Greece and Germany achieved at least one bronze medal in the Italian event.
Romania’s Camelia Negrea was the titleholder at the pinweight (46kg) but she was defeated by Turkey’s Derya Aktop in the semi-finals. The gold medal was taken by finally Russia’s Elena Sabitova who triumphed over her Turkish opponent. In the absence of two-time Champion Hulya Sahin Ukraine’s Tatiana Lebedeva claimed the second gold medal of the European Women’s Boxing Championships after beating Hungary’s Monika Csik.
Italy’s best female boxer in the 2000s, Simona Galassi achieved her first European title in Pécs at the flyweight (50kg) and defended her throne in Riccione on home soil. The Italian boxer was a hard target for all of her opponents including Russia’s Viktoriya Usachenko in the final. Her fellow Marzia Davide achieved the gold at the bantamweight (54kg) in 2003 and she repeated that performance one year later but at the featherweight (57kg). Davide’s success over France’s Myriam Chomaz meant the host country earned two gold medals.
Romania’s newcomer Floare Lihet was not the main favourite for the gold medal at the light bantamweight (52kg) but she defeated all of her rivals including Turkey’s Sumeyra Kaya in the final. The next final at the 2004 European Women’s Boxing Championships delivered Romania’s second gold medal which bagged by Mihaela Cijevschi. She defeated England’s Nicola Adams in the first preliminary round and Norway’s Kari Jensen was also not able to stop her in the final. Her English opponent began her international campaign in Riccione and later became the first female two-time Olympic Champion.
Turkey’s best woman boxer at the 2000s Gulsum Tatar started her successful road in Riccione where she took the gold of the lightweight (60kg). The Turkish boxer landed more punches than Finland’s Eva Wahlstroem and secured her first European title. Ireland’s future sensation and later five-time AIBA Women’s World Champion Katie Taylor made her debut in the Riccione 2004 edition. Denmark’s historical first female gold was taken by Vinnie Skovgaard who defeated another Nordic talent, Norway’s Cecilia Braekhus in the final of the light welterweight (63kg).
Russia’s AIBA Women’s World Champion Irina Sinetskaya was two-time titleholder in the European Women’s Championships and she began the first who earned the third continental gold medals. The 26-year-old Russian had a closer final against Sweden’s Anna Ingman but she managed to win her next gold medal. Her teammate Olga Slavinskaya defeated a defending champion Nurcan Carkci in the final of the light middleweight (70kg).
Hungary’s Anita Ducza also advanced to the final of the middleweight (75kg) as in 2003 but she was defeated by Sweden’s tall Anna Laurell. Ukraine’s Anzhela Torska claimed her second European gold at the light heavyweight (80kg) after beating Russia’s Galina Ivanova in the final. The best of the heavyweight (86kg) remained Hungary’s AIBA Women’s World Champion Maria Kovacs who dominated her final over Ukraine’s Anna Zyelyuk taking her second European title.
List of the winners in the 2004 European Women’s Boxing Championships
- Pinweight (46kg): Elena Sabitova, Russia
- Light flyweight (48kg): Tatiana Lebedeva, Ukraine
- Flyweight (50kg): Simona Galassi, Italy
- Light Bantamweight (52kg): Floare Lihet, Romania
- Bantamweight (54kg): Mihaela Cijevschi, Romania
- Featherweight (57kg): Marzia Davide, Italy
- Lightweight (60kg): Gulsum Tatar, Turkey
- Light welterweight (63kg): Vinnie Skovgaard, Denmark
- Welterweight (66kg): Irina Sinetskaya, Russia
- Light middleweight (70kg): Olga Slavinskaya, Russia
- Middleweight (75kg): Anna Laurell, Sweden
- Light Heavyweight (80kg): Anzhela Torska, Ukraine
- Heavyweight (86kg): Maria Kovacs, Hungary
