Foreign athletes to compete for Kazakhstan, local boxers fight at AIBA Pro Boxing for ticket to Olympics

Foreign athletes will be competing for Kazakhstan at the Rio Olympics in 2016, Tengrinews reports. 

One of such athletes is a Mongolian judoka Galbadrakh Otgontsetseg. The judoka won the Grand Prix Astana, the silver at the IJF Grand Slam Moscow in Moscow and a bronze medal at the Grand Prix Qingdao.

According to Asia Russia Daily, in Ulan Bator the Mongolian Judo Federation and Kazakhstan’s Federation of Judo has made an agreement on Otgontsetseg participation in the Olympics as a representative of Kazakhstan.

Also, the President of the Kazakhstan Taekwondo Federation Vyatcheslav Kim said that the South Korean sportsman would possibly compete for Kazakhstan at the Olympics.

“We have invited a potential foreign athlete. He is the two times World Champion in the heavy weight category. I do not want to disclose his name, because we are still considering him. We have signed a preliminary agreement (…). He is soon brining a letter of clearance and we will start the application for a Kazakhstani passport. He is a tremendous and experienced guy. He wants to compete in the Olympics and we want to give him this chance. Our stars have aligned,” Kim said.

Earlier, Kazakhstani boxers competed in the AIBA Pro Boxing tournament for a chance to represent the country in the Rio Olympics. Birzhan Zhapykov won Leandro Blanc from Argentina in the 49 kg weight category. Ilyas Suleimenov lost to a Mexican superstar Elias Emigdio in the 52 kg weight category. A Kazakhstani boxer competing in the 64 kg weight category Berik Abdrakhmanov defeated Robson Donato Conceicao. Fans' favorite Adilbek Niyazymbetov lost during the pre-ranking fight to Mathieu Baudlerique in 81 kg weight category. Anton Pinchuk lost to the AIBA World Champion Clemente Russo from Italy in the 91 kg weight category.

“The only way pro boxers can qualify for the Olympic Games in 2016 is the APB competition, which is fully supported by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The qualification path to the Games will be through competing in the APB program from its launch in 2014 until the APB Olympic Qualifying Events in 2015,” the AIBA Pro Boxing website said.

By Gyuzel Kamalova