Flashback. ASBC Asian Junior Boxing Championships in Tashkent where Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Japan win the titles

Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Japan shared the titles in Tashkent where such future stars as Kazakhstan’s Sanatali Toltayev and Uzbekistan’s Bilolbek Mirzarakhimov won their weight classes. Thailand’s top elite team members as Thitisan Panmod and Atichai Phoemsap began their international participations in Tashkent.

The special guests of the event were the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Dr. Thomas Bach, the President of the Olympic Council of Asia Mr. Ahmed Al-Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, the President of the International Boxing Association (AIBA) Dr. Ching-Kuo Wu, and President of the Uzbekistan National Olympic Committee Mr. Mirabror Usmanov on the day of the finals.

Tashkent did not host any continental event since 1999 therefore their boxers were enough motivated. Uzbekistan has done incredible job in the road to the finals as all of their thirteen young boxers advanced to the gold medal bouts in the front of the home crowd. Uzbekistan topped the team rankings and also the medal standings with their seven gold and six silver medals ahead of Kazakhstan in Tashkent. The competition was a great preparation before the AIBA Junior World Boxing Championships which was held in St. Petersburg, Russia later that year in September.

Besides to the Uzbek and Kazakh dominancy in Tashkent, Japan claimed its first ever title in the history of the ASBC Asian Confederation Junior Boxing Championships. Philippines, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan all have had one finalist in the championships in Tashkent. Among the developing nations of the Asian continent, United Arab Emirates achieved three bronzes while Afghanistan secured two bronze medals in Tashkent.

The number of the participated young boxers was 103 in the ASBC Asian Junior Boxing Championships in 2015. The following nations attended in the 2015 edition: Afghanistan, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Philippines, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, and Uzbekistan.

Kazakhstan’s Aibek Dossanov was one of the youngest team members of their delegation but he proved he could be a future star in our beloved combat sport. The 15-year-old pinweight (46kg) boxer lost to Uzbekistan’s Halimbek Utegenov in the final of the Heydar Aliyev Junior Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan in April 2015 but he proved much better performance in comparison to their first bout. Dossanov worked in different rhythm and attacked more than Utegenov on their re-match and delivered a surprise in the opening title bout in Tashkent.

Japan’s National Invitational High School Champion Takumi Tamura was the main favourite of their delegation but the light flyweight (48kg) boxer lost his quarter-final contest. Ryutaro Nakagaki, who trains with Mr. Hideaki Nagamine in the city of Miyazaki, won the anticipated gold medal for Japan in Tashkent. The 16-year-old light bantamweight (52kg) boxer defeated his Korean, Filipino and Kyrgyz opponents in the road to the finals where he did not give any chance to Uzbekistan’s Heydar Aliyev Junior Cup winner Murodjon Aliyev in Tashkent claiming Japan’s historical gold medal.

Kazakhstan’s Sanatali Toltayev arrived to the event together with his twin brother Samatali with gold medal expectations. Samatali was eliminated by an Iranian boxer in the quarter-final of the championships but Sanatali was able to advance to the final of the ASBC Asian Confederation Junior Boxing Championships in Tashkent. The 16-year-old Kazakh boxer lost to Uzbekistan’s Saidjamshid Jafarov in the final of the Heydar Aliyev Junior Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan two months before the continental event but on their re-match in the capital city of Uzbekistan, he was able to do revenge.

Uzbekistan’s Bilolbek Mirzarakhimov won the Dildabekov Prizes Junior Tournament in Shymkent just before the championships and defeated one of his main rivals, Iran’s two-time Junior National Champion Hossein Mousa Khani in the semi-finals. His gold medal opponent was Japan’s Imanaga Taiga who reached his career highlight advancing to the finals. The Japanese southpaw trains in Nara City with coach Mr. Hiroaki Takami but his tactic was not enough to beat Uzbekistan’s favourite in Tashkent.

Uzbekistan’s third gold medal was delivered by Timur Merzhanov who continued the success of his elder brother Eldar who won the ASBC Asian Confederation Junior Boxing Championships in Shymkent in 2013. Yakhyokhon Saidkhonov eliminated the main favourite of the light middleweight (70kg) Daulet Zaushev of Kazakhstan in the semi-finals and following that he stopped South Korea’s Kim Dae Hee for the gold.

Kosimkhon Kosimov won the final of the middleweight (75kg) against Kyrgyzstan’s Alisher Chatkalbekov by unanimous decision while his teammate Abboskhon Mirzaabdullayev had also a hard battle against Kazakhstan’s Khurshedshokh Iskandarov in the gold medal bout of the light heavyweight (80kg).

The seventh title of the host nation was acquired by their strong Profsor Rorimsha who defeated Kazakhstan’s Dildabekov Prizes Junior Tournament winner Nurdaulet Ulanuly in the hectic semi-final. Following that, he was too strong for Turkmenistan’s Geldimyrat Toyliyev in the gold medal bout of the heavyweight (+80kg). 

List of the winners in the 2015 ASBC Asian Junior Boxing Championships
 46kg: Aibek Dossanov, Kazakhstan
 48kg: Bakhodir Barotov, Uzbekistan
 50kg: Daulet Nysan, Kazakhstan
 52kg: Ryutaro Nakagaki, Japan
 54kg: Sanatali Toltayev, Kazakhstan
 57kg: Bilolbek Mirzarakhimov, Uzbekistan
 60kg: Abylay Ybraimov, Kazakhstan
 63kg: Timur Merzhanov, Uzbekistan
 66kg: Aldiyar Tursynali, Kazakhstan
 70kg: Yakhyokhon Saidkhonov, Uzbekistan
 75kg: Kosimkhon Kosimov, Uzbekistan
 80kg: Abboskhon Mirzaabdullayev, Uzbekistan
 +80kg: Profsor Rorimsha, Uzbekistan