Five Algerian boxers assured of medals win or lose today’s semi-finals
Five Algerian boxers are walking tall as they prepare to trade leather with their opponents in today’s semi-finals of Strandja Memorial tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria.
They’re assured of five medals irrespective of the outcome of their semi-final bouts.
What they’re fighting for now is to advance to the finals to battle it out for gold and silver medals.
The five boxers are minimumweight Kamel Khennousi, welterweight Abdenacer Benlaribi, light-middleweight Mohamed Makhelouf, middleweight Abderaouf Ghazli Ahmed and light-heavyweight Mohamed Houmri (pictured in red attire)
Khennousi fights India’s Barun Singh, Benlaribi battles Kazakhstan’s world silver medallist Dulat Bekbauov, Makhelouf has a date with Iran’s Moslem Maghsoudi who lost in the third round at the 2021 World Championships, Ahmed meets Bulgaria’s four-time European champion William Cholov and Houmri will take on Bulgaria’s Kritiyan Nikolov.
This year’s Strandja has attracted 261 boxers – 178 men and 83 women – from 28 countries.
Uzbekistan’s world flyweight champion Hasanboy Dusmatov meets compatriot Khujanazar Nortojiev, and could be in for a rematch with world silver medallist Billal Bennama from France whom Dusmatov defeated in the finals of last year’s World Championships but that’s if Bennama overcomes Bulgaria’s defending Strandja bantamweight champion Yasen Radev.
India’s two-time world champion Nikhat Zareen is favoured to beat Bulgaria’s Zlatislava Chukanova at light-flyweight while Irish European Games middleweight champion Aoife O’Rourke, who saw off India’s world champion Lovlina Borgohain, faces Chinese twice Olympic middleweight medal winner Li Qian who eliminated Nigeria’s Africa silver medallist
Patricia Mbata.
✍🏼 AFBC Communications