AIBA World Boxing Championships Olympic qualifiers underway

DOHA, Qatar—The 2015 AIBA World Boxing Championships and Olympic qualifiers got underway Monday night in impressive Opening Ceremonies at the state of the art Ali Bin Hamad Al Attiyah Arena in this cosmopolitan Middle Eastern city. No less than the brother of the Emir and Qatari National Olympic Committee Chairman Sheik Joaan bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani graced the occasion and together with AIBA President Ching-Kuo-Wu, formally opened the championships.
A total of 257 boxers from 74 countries qualified from 5 different continental tournaments to vie for the 23 Olympic slots made available in ten weight categories for men ranging from light flyweight (49 Kg) to super heavyweight (91+ Kg).
The Philippines is represented here by light flyweight Rogen Ladon of Bago City and Zamboanga City’s Eumir Felix Marcial. Both fighters earned the right to compete here by winning silver medals at the Asian Men’s Championships held in Bangkok early September.
Ladon leads off for the Philippine charge as he faces Leandro Blanc of Argentina in the very first fight of the tournament scheduled late Tuesday.
Blanc is a veteran of the World Series of Boxing, the AIBA tournament which features several countries pitting boxers in 5 rounds instead of the usual 3. The Argentinian was beaten by Filipino Mark Anthony Barriga in that tournament. However, Barriga failed to join the Asian qualifiers last month as he was recuperating from a hand surgery.
Marcial fights on Wednesday against Egypt’s Said Mohamed Walid, who likewise won silver in the African qualifiers.
ABAP president Ricky Vargas spoke to the boxers before they left for Doha, extolling them to “do everything you can to qualify for Rio. If you do, you will be wearing that Olympic badge of honor for the rest of your life.”