The Grand Opening Ceremony of the ASBC Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships impressed the fans

The Grand Opening Ceremony of the ASBC Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships was held at the Beeline Arena in Astana after the first session of the competition.

Kazakhstan has bright cultural tradition and the country has the experience how to host boxing championships. Kazakhstan was the host of the 2011 Cadet World Boxing Championships, the 2013 Men’s Elite World Boxing Championships and the 2016 Women’s World Boxing Championships.

Kazakhstan’s boxing history is fantastic, the country produced Olympic, World, and Asian Champions in the recent decades. Kazakhstan earned Olympic gold medals in boxing in 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 and in 2016.

The Grand Opening Ceremony started with the flag parade of the 22 participating countries: Hong Kong, India, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Palestine, Philippines, Tajikistan, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and Yemen.

The speaker of the Ceremony introduced the 23 Referee & Judges who works in the ASBC Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships in Astana. Among the referees and judges, 10 are from other continents to keep the neutrality in the championships.  

Mr. Yermek Marzhikpayev, the Sports Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan welcomed all of the guests, delegations and boxers in Astana during his speech. He mentioned Kazakhstan’s detailed boxing results and he was grateful for all of the people who supported the organization of the championships.

IBA President Mr. Umar Kremlev underlined that Kazakhstan is the No.1 in the overall IBA World Rankings among the teams and the Central Asian boxing power is always a great host. He was thankful for the work of the Kazakhstan Boxing Federation, Asian Boxing Confederation, National Federation, officials and the volunteers of the championships.

Mr. Ali Salameh, the Secretary General of the Asian Boxing Confederation, also added Kazakhstan’s important role in the boxing world. He apologized on behalf of the ASBC President Mr. Pichai Chunhavajira of Thailand, who could not attend in the Opening Ceremony but he will visit the finals of the championships.

Mr. Kenges Rakishev, the President of the Kazakhstan Boxing Federation, the London 2012 Olympic Champion, the member of the Kazakhstan National Olympic Committee Mr. Serik Sapiyev also attended in the Grand Opening Ceremony.

Ms. Sara Bouhlel of Tunisia arranged the official oath on behalf of the Referees & Judges following the speeches. One of Kazakhstan’s top boxers, the Youth World Championships silver medallist Daulet Tulemissov made the oath on behalf of the participating athletes.

After the cultural shows of the Grand Opening Ceremony, the junior preliminary bouts continued in Kazakhstan’s capital city.

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