(From left) Qatar Boxing Federation president Yousuf Ali al-Kazim, AIBA executive director Karim Bouzidi, AIBA president Dr Ching-Kuo Wu and AIBA supervisor Pat Fiacco are seen at the official draw ceremony of the World Boxing Championships in Doha yesterday. The 11-day event, the first Boxing Worlds to be held in the Middle East, begins today.

 

By Satya Rath/Doha


The countdown is over, the stage is set, the gloves are out… It’s time for the action to begin.
At 2 in the afternoon today, at the state-of-the-art Ali Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah Arena in Al Sadd, the AIBA World Boxing Championships will spring to action with two bouts—Argentinian boxer Leandro Blanc taking on Rogen Ladon of Philippines in Ring A, and Cornelis Kwangu Langu of Indonesia facing off Japan’s Tomoya Tsuboi in the adjacent Ring B—both in light fly weight division (46-49kgs).
The official draw ceremony, held yesterday, was presided by Dr Ching-Kuo Wu, President of the International Boxing Association (AIBA), and orchestrated by Pat Fiacco, Supervisor for the first-ever Boxing Worlds to be held in the Middle East.
Thirty-nine bouts are scheduled for the opening day, to be completed in two sessions—2 to 5:15 pm in the afternoon, and 7 to 10 in the evening. The preliminary rounds will continue till Friday, with the quarterfinals scheduled for Saturday. The semifinals will be held over the next two days (October 11 and 12), and after a rest day on October 13, the event will culminate with the finals on October 14 and 15.
A total of 258 boxers, from 74 countries, were selected for bouts in 10 different weight categories ranging from 49 kilograms to 91-plus kilograms. As per AIBA rules, only the top-ranked boxers from each of the five continental confederations were seeded, thus adding to the excitement and drama with the rest of the bouts being picked by random and the luck of the draw.
Considering that these are the first World Championships in history where the boxers have had to qualify, it promises to be the most competitive edition to date.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to witness the best boxers on the planet go head to head here in Doha. It will be a great sporting spectacle, fun and engaging for everyone. I encourage all sports fans to come to the arena and witness history in the making. It will be an unforgettable experience, and we can’t wait to welcome fans from all over the world supporting their local boxing heroes,” Dr Thani al-Kuwari, Secretary General of the Qatar Olympic Committee, and CEO of the Local Organizing Committee, said in a statement.
The preliminary rounds will witness a vast array of boxers from nations with strong expat communities across Doha. Egypt’s Hussein Bakr Abdin Hosam, the reigning African welterweight champion, is through to the next preliminary round scheduled for Thursday afternoon because of his strong seeding.
Another top seed, Mohamed Flissi, the flyweight favourite from Algeria who got a silver medal at the last World Championships in 2013, will have his first bout on Friday evening with his opponent coming either from Armenia or Papa New Guinea.
The local Filipino community, no doubt boosted by the news of Manny Pacquaio’s arrival to Doha on Thursday, have one boxer to look out for when Ladon, a silver medalist from the Southeast Asian Games in June, goes up against Argentina’s Blanc in the light flyweight category in what will be the opening bout of the championships. Ladon, for sure, will be hoping to do both his idol and country proud.
For the six-member Qatar team, the World Championships will be the biggest stage on which they have ever performed. The team’s captain and reigning GCC champion, 34-year-old Abdullatef  Sadiq, is thrilled to be able to fight in front of his own people. “Every day I have dreamt of boxing at this level here in Qatar, and I can’t believe that it’s finally going to be reality. I’m still pinching myself,” the 60kg featherweight boxer said.
Sadiq will face Venezuela’s Luis Cabrera in his first bout, while in the welterweight category, Thulasi Tharaumalingam was drawn against Kagiso Bagwasi from Botswana, with Hzam Nabah facing a tough opening bout against Argentina’s Alberto Palmetta. Alhadi Abdulrahman, the Qatari middle weight boxer, also faces South American opposition in the name of Endry Saavedra Pinto from Venezuela. In the light heavy category, Hakan Murst Nuraydin has to overcome Dzemal Bosnjak of Bosnia and Hercegovina to advance to the next round.
The Indian squad has six boxers, ranging from light flyweight to super heavyweight. In the 56kg category, Shiva Thapa and Krishan Vikas will be facing Khalil Litm from Algeria and Zoltan Harcsa from Hungary respectively in the afternoon action today, while the evening session will see Devendro Laishram taking on Britain’s Harvey Horn in the light flyweight category.
Another British Boxer, and a heads-on favourite for the superheavy weight title here, is Joseph Joyce. He will, however, not compete until the next preliminary round on Friday night as a result of being the top seed. It will still be tough for Joyce though, as his quarter-final opponent is likely to be the hard-hitting Mohamed Arjaoui of Morocco.
One of Joyce’s strongest competitors and reigning world champion, Azerbaijan’s Magomedrasul Majidov, was forced to pull out of the Worlds due to a recent facial operation — a boost in Britain’s chase for their first gold medal since 2007.
Cuba, the most successful boxing nation in history, have come to Doha with a 10-strong squad, the largest in the championships. The Cuban squad has several reigning world champions in their ranks, with Lazaro Alvarez (60kg) and Julio Cesar la Cruz (81kg) both going straight through to the next round, and will not be seen in the ring until Friday night.
The other defending world champions from different countries are all seeded, and will
also be competing from the quarterfinal stage onwards.
“The wait is over, the draw is complete, the boxers are ready, the venue is ready and Qatar is ready. I hope the fans will come to enjoy the special atmosphere at the magnificent venue. It’s a unique opportunity to see this noble art up close performed by the greatest athletes in their sport,” Yousuf Ali al-Kazim, Qatar Boxing Federation President, said.