Yoenlys Hernandez
Tashkent, May 12 (JIT).- Two world champions and four debutants contributed half of the 12 wins attempted by Cuba on the day that defined the medalists of the Tashkent 2023 World Boxing Championships.
Defending king Yoenlis Hernandez (75 kg) and 2017 titleholder Yosbany Veitía (54 kg) are the highest ranked in the sextet completed by Alejandro Claro (48 kg), Saidel Horta (57 kg), Erislandy Alvarez (60 kg) and Fernando Arzola (+92 kg).
Among the losers, the balance was reversed, as there were such top-ranked bantamweights as Julio Cesar La Cruz (92 kg), Roniel Iglesias (67 kg), Arlen Lopez (80 kg) and Lazaro Alvarez (63.5 kg), and the newcomers at this level Jorge Cuellar (71 kg) and Nelson Williams (86 kg).
Hérnandez disserted at the expense of Bulgarian Rami Mofid Kiwan as a confirmation that he is in conditions to repeat in the center of the podium, and Veitía adjusted to what was designed against Venezuelan Yoel Finol, an old acquaintance who this time failed to "tangle" him to the rhythm of his style.
"It was a better fight than the previous ones, with a more demanding opponent, with similar characteristics to mine, which I knew how to decipher to neutralize him with speed," said the two-year incumbent, who managed the rhythms as he pleased from the middle and short distances.
Veitía celebrated his fourth time in the list of winners in this kind of competitions, because in addition to winning in Hamburg, he also has silver medals in Doha 2015 and bronze in Almaty 2023.
"Finol is a very slippery boxer, and that's why I made up my mind not to follow him all over the ring," he explained. "I told professor Rolando Acebal that I'm in good shape, and he trusts me, so we mapped out the strategy and there's already my fourth medal in three divisions," he added.
The contribution of the newcomers became news for its immediate significance and for the future, with a highlight for a Horta capable of defeating the Kazakh runner-up in Belgrade 2021 Serik Termizhanov, although Claro, the fiery Alvarez and Arzola also caused praise in the Smoke Arena.
By the way, perhaps unknowingly, the latter repositioned Cuba in the list of countries awarded in the supercomplete category, a step not achieved since 2005.
As for the defeats, there were questions to those decreed against Roniel and La Cruz, because in both cases the judges issued conflicting votes, which did not reward what happened in each of the rounds of their respective fights.
Lázaro and Arlen made mistakes that ruined their real possibilities, and Cuéllar and Williams could not defeat more experienced men, but they sold their farewells of a fair that will not have actions this Thursday.
One day later, the semifinals will take place, with Uzbekistan (9), Cuba (6), Russia (6) and Kazakhstan (5) as the most represented countries. Between Saturday and Sunday, the 13 winners will be announced.
