Boxing

Light flyweight boxer Hasanboy Dusmatov leads the Ukraine Otamans line-up that will face Cuba Domadores Friday in the seventh week of the current World Series of Boxing (WSB).

Uzbekistan's Dusmatov, who remains undefeated after three presentations, will face Cuban Johanys Argilagos, who accumulates two victories and one defeat.

For the 56 kg category, the Ukrainian franchise has chosen Kyrgyzstan's strong Omurbek Malabekov, whose first match in the current series will be against Cuban bantam Andy Cruz, who accumulates one victory in an equal number of bouts.

In the 64 kg category, Cuban Yasniel Toledo, also undefeated in the current series, will face Vladimir Matviychuk, bronze medalist in the 2011 European Championships, who lost his only bout thus far in the current tournament.

Cuban middle weight (75kg) Arlen López, who accumulates three victories and no defeats, will face Uzbekistan's Hurshydbek Normatov, who has won his two bouts.

Finally, in the heavy-weight category, Cuban Erislandy Savon, who remains undefeated after eleven bouts in world series of boxing, will face Sergey Krnyeyev, a newcomer to the current series.

Friday's match between Ukraine Otamans and Cuba Domadores will begin at 2:30 p.m. (local Cuban time).

CONCACAF and the Cuban Football Association in efforts to prepare an international transfer market

The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Football Association (CONCACAF), alongside the Cuban Football Association (CFA) and government officials, have taken a major step towards the opening of the international transfer market. The aim of this initiative is for local players to be able to properly transfer from Cuban clubs to clubs abroad.

To assist in the process, CONCACAF held a two day seminar on February 19 and 20 in Havana, with the intention of supporting the CFA in its efforts to achieve a major development in Cuba’s soccer history.

“This significant occasion represents the first step to open new horizons for football’s growth in Cuba,” said FIFA Vice President and CONCACAF President Jeffrey Webb. “We hope the international transfer market will provide Cuban players with unique opportunities to display their extraordinary talent in the international arena. Local players will be able to further develop their skill and inspire younger generations to follow their passion for football-soccer.”

The seminar, attended by representatives from the CFA and government officials, covered multiple subjects from contractual stability, underage player protection, player registration, and training and formation mechanisms, with the aim of explaining the steps necessary to assist in the opening of Cuba’s international transfer market. In addition, CONCACAF advised on how to create a registry and data base of Cuban players while obtaining guidance on training mechanisms.

CONCACAF is fully committed to the continuous support of its Member Associations and its endeavor to significantly and positively impact the development of soccer.

IOC Highlights Progress in Preparations for Rio 2016
 

International Olympic Committee (IOC) president, Thomas Bach, said in Rio de Janeiro he was satisfied with the progress made by the organizers of the 2016 Olympic Games.

I am very satisfied, said Bach in statements to the media after leaving the hotel where he was staying in Rio.

The IOC president attended the opening session of the eighth visit of the Coordination Commission for the Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro-2016.

Bach is also slated to participate this week in Rio de Janeiro in a meeting of the IOC Executive Committee. He then will travel to Brasilia, where he will meet with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff.

We have seen great progress in recent months in Brazil, something that makes us very confident that we will have great Olympic Games.

There are some challenges and delays, but our Coordination Commission is here again to overcome that, the IOC president said in an interview on Globo TV.

Bach's words of praise in Rio de Janeiro came a year after several IOC leaders cast doubt on the possibility that the Brazilian city was ready to organize the Olympic Games in 2016.