Strong Uzbek team will be competing in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games

The boxing tournament of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will be starting on August 6 where 63 Asians can take part for the medals in Brazil. Among them 11 are Uzbeks which is record number of quota place since 1996 since the country can attend in the Olympic Games. Uzbekistan has got gold medals contenders in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and their strong squad could be delivered their next sensational event.
The strong nation claimed six medals in the Doha 2015 AIBA World Boxing Championships and nine podium places in the last edition of the ASBC Asian Confederation Boxing Championships in Bangkok, Thailand. Four of their boxers are already qualified from the APB and AOB events in 2015.
Uzbekistan sent nine boxers to AIBA Asian & Oceanian Olympic Qualification Event to Qian’an, China where their athletes could get further seven quota places for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. The competition raised their Olympic spots up to 11 and Rio will be the first edition when Uzbek boxers can attend in each of the men weight classes. Uzbek Tigers were newcomers in the Season VI of the World Series of Boxing but the franchise was able to go through until the Semi-finals.
Former Olympic Games bronze medallist coach Mr. Rustam Saidov’s national team has got chance to repeat their top performance also in Rio following the successes in 2015 and in the first part of the current year. Their women team developed well in the recent two years and one of their big talent 19-year-old Yodgoroy Mirzaeva qualified for the Games as first Uzbek female boxer.
Uzbekistan’s Youth Olympic Games winner Bektemir Melikuziev robbed into the world of boxing after his amazing youth successes in 2015 when he won gold at the ASBC Asian Confederation Boxing Championships in Bangkok and silver at the Doha 2015 AIBA World Boxing Championships. The Middleweight class (75 kg) boxer turned to 20 in the recent months and he is among the top favourites of his category.
Murodjon Akhmadaliev and Fazliddin Gaibnazarov both achieved silver medals in the Doha 2015 AIBA World Boxing Championships less than one year ago. Both athletes had narrow losses in the gold medal bout in Qatar and planning to win their next finals. Both had only small appearance in the World Series of Boxing this year.
Beijing 2008 Olympian Hurshid Tojibaev was the first Uzbek boxer who qualified for Rio in 2015 following his title in the AIBA Pro Boxing. The Lightweight class (60 kg) boxer competed at the Rio Test Event and at the Strandja Memorial Tournament in Bulgaria in AOB competitions to acclimatize back to the three-round battles.
Uzbekistan’s defending ASBC Asian Confederation Champion and Summer Universiade winner Hasanboy Dusmatov won all of his WSB bouts during his career and has got the skills to win the gold medal at the Light Flyweight class (49 kg) in Rio de Janeiro. The 22-year-old boxer won the Olympic Test Event last December and he is planning to get the same result in the August’s event.
Uzbekistan’s best Flyweight class (52 kg) boxer Shakhobiddin Zoirov achieved silver medals in the 2013 & 2015 ASBC Asian Confederation Boxing Championships and also at the Incheon 2014 Asian Games. After three silver medals the 22-year-old boxer won the AIBA Asian & Oceanian Olympic Qualification Event in Qian’an and proved also strong performance in the World Series of Boxing.
Elshod Rasulov involved to the national team of Uzbekistan in 2005 and since then he claimed two gold medals in the Asian Games in 2006 and in 2010. He bagged three medals in the history of the AIBA World Boxing Championships since 2009. Besides to Kazakhstan’s Adilbek Niyazymbetov he is among the Asian favourites of the Light Heavyweight class (81 kg) in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Kazakhstan’s Ivan Dychko dominated all of the Asian events at the Super Heavyweight class (+91 kg) in the recent years but Uzbekistan’s Doha 2015 AIBA World Boxing Championships bronze medallist Bakhodir Jalolov reached his level after a few years of experiences in our sport. The three-time National Champion tall boxer is faster than his opponents and also has got realistic chance to win at least a medal in Rio. The 22-year-old Jalolov was appointed as Uzbekistan’s flag bearer in the Opening Ceremony of the Games.
Uzbekistan’s new Welterweight class (69 kg) boxer will be Shakhram Giyasov who claimed gold medal in their National Championships last November. The 22-year-old boxer has been competing in the international elite level since 2012, won the gold medal at the AIBA Asian & Oceanian Olympic Qualification Event in Qian’an therefore his expectations are high.
Uzbekistan’s top Heavyweight class (91 kg) boxer, two-time AIBA World Boxing Championships quarter-finalist Rustam Tulaganov won the gold medal as the main favourite of the AIBA Asian & Oceanian Olympic Qualification Event in Qian’an. The 25-year-old boxer claimed silver medal in the last edition of the ASBC Asian Confederation Boxing Championships in Bangkok as well.