Boksen.nl | Verslag finaledag Eindhoven Box Cup (Engels)

The finals of the new edition of the Eindhoven Box Cup were held in the Netherlands which competition was the highlight of the week. Thailand’s Youth Olympic Games winner Atichai Phoemsap and Netherlands’ No.1 Enrico La Cruz amazed the crowd with their fantastic final which was won by the Southeast Asian teenager.

The Technical Delegate of the Eindhoven Box Cup Mr. Maxim Cherticovtsev of Moldova, and ASBC EC Member Mr. Dian Gomes of Sri Lanka followed the finals on Day3. Netherlands’ boxing official Mr. Bernard Van Til supported the success of the Eindhoven Box Cup as Deputy Supervisor at the very first time during his career. The ring speaker of the Eindhoven Box Cup Mr. Ray Martin arranged a fantastic atmosphere in the venue hall and his work was a great addition to this international event.

The Eindhoven Box Cup is a new event in the European Boxing Map which was launched only a few years ago but the engine of the competition Mr. Jeremie Besson developed it rapidly and conquered new markets in the world. Afghanistan, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Mali, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Zambia also attended in the Eindhoven Box Cup besides to several European countries.

Bout of the day

Thailand’s Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games winner and AIBA Youth World Champion Atichai Phoemsap is one of the biggest boxing talents in the whole globe who proved amazing developments in the Eindhoven Box Cup in comparison to his last appearance. His final opponent was Netherlands’ No.1 Enrico La Cruz who earned bronze medal in the Minsk 2019 European Games and qualified for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Thailand’s rising star amazed in the first round with his virtuoso style of boxing and footwork which is unpredictable. Phoemsap controlled their contest in the first and second rounds delivering the best performance in the whole Eindhoven Box Cup. La Cruz caught his Thai teenage rival in the third round but the final contest of the lightweight (63kg) was won by Phoemsap today.

Surprise of the day

Thailand’s Ammarit Yaodam moved back to the flyweight (52kg) but he was enough quick to eliminate England’s National Champion Hamza Mehmood in the semi-final on Day2. In the final of the Eindhoven Box Cup he was the favourite against Belgium’s Zakaria Boudhi who tried to use his longer reach in their respective title bout. Yaodam pressurized his taller Belgian opponent and worked through all of the three rounds in high intensity but Boudhi’s counter-punches decided their tough contest which was surprise in the day of the finals.

The Round-Up

Netherlands’ Sofia 2017 EUBC European Youth Champion Chelsey Heijnen began boxing only five years ago and she joined to the elite age group only less than two years ago. The 20-year-old Dutch light welterweight (64kg) boxer had two strong victories in the Eindhoven Box Cup but her best rival in the finals was Italy’s Montana Belts Tournament silver medallist Valeria Bustamante who defeated Denmark’s Ditte Frostholm in the semi-finals. The Dutch girl received strong punches in the first minute but after that she was more patient and tried to do smarter boxing. The Italian was a tough opponent in their final but Heijnen was able to keep the gold on home soil following her narrow triumph.

Ireland’s Grainne Walsh earned bronze medal in the Minsk 2019 European Games but in the Ulan-Ude AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships she was replaced by former Youth Olympian Christina Desmond in her weight class. The experienced Irish is planning to regain her place in the top elite national team and she showed her high potential also in the Eindhoven Box Cup. The 24-year-old Irish was quicker and felt the fighting range better than France’s Fanny Galle in the first round. The French girl gave in everything in the bout but Grace’s technical skills dominated their exciting welterweight (69kg) final.

France’s Davina Michel is their No.1 at the women’s elite middleweight (75kg) who returned to the national team after a few years of break. The Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games participant French boxer eliminated Kazakhstan’s AIBA Women’s Youth World Champion Araylym Begdilda in the semi-finals which was a super bout. Michel’s final opponent will be another Asian boxer, Sri Lanka’s new team member P.U. Jayasuriya who had serious height disadvantage in their contest. The Dutch referee had to count the Sri Lankan boxer in the first round which showed Michel’s clear dominancy. The 22-year-old French kept the Sri Lankan long in the whole bout and won the final by unanimous decision.

Ireland’s Sean Purcell used strong punches to and smart strategy to beat Belgium’s experienced Vasile Usturoi in the final of the bantamweight (57kg). The Belgian had more international elite contests but the Irish boxer’s tactic worked better in the day of the finals.

Ireland’s next title was achieved by Kieran Molloy in the welterweight (69kg) who had to box over his previous level to beat Thailand’s AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships bronze medallist Peerapat Yeasungnoen.

Norway’s Lithuanian-descent Mindaugas Gedminas eliminated Netherlands’ top boxer Max Van der Pas in the semi-finals of the Eindhoven Box Cup which was a small surprise on Day2. The Norwegian middleweight (75kg) boxer proved strong developments in the recent one year and his stance and fighting style was uncomfortable for Belgium’s Lancelot Proton De La Chappelle in the first round. The Belgian acclimatized to the level of the bout and Gedminas’ fighting style in time and his efforts were enough to win their top final in Eindhoven.

Netherlands’ top light heavyweight (81kg) boxer Artjom Kasparian walked over to the gold medal following his opponent England’s George Crotty was unable to box against him. The last title of the whole Eindhoven Box Cup was taken by Belgium’s Victor Schelstraete who impressed in the recent events at the heavyweight (91kg). The Belgian delivered better performance in the finals but his today’s combinations were enough to beat Netherlands’ Donovan Vroom in the title bout.