Saudi Arabia’s boxers shine at UAE championships

ABU DHABI: Several boxers from Saudi Arabia won top honors over the weekend in Abu Dhabi at the UAE Open Boxing Championships.

Amateur boxers born between 1983 and 2008 — divided into junior, youth and elite categories — from the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Iraq, took part in the contest from Sept. 8 to 10.

A total of 176 boxers took part in the tournament organized by the UAE Boxing Federation in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Sports Council. Among those in attendance were Sheikh Zayed bin Nahyan bin Zayed Al-Nahyan; UAE Boxing Federation and Asian Boxing Federation President Anas Al-Otaiba; and International Boxing Association Vice President Abakarov Abdulmutalim.

Saudi Arabia’s female flyweight Hala Saleh Rashidi from Al-Ahli Club in the Kingdom won a gold medal after defeating Nissa Mahdi from the UAE. Nawaf Al-Jahani (46 kg) from Saudi Arabia also impressed by winning the first men’s junior final.

Al-Ahli club youth boxers Ibraheem Khaleel Al-Jehni (51 kg) and Yazan Ahmed Al-Ghami (57 kg) also rose to the occasion by winning gold medals.

Local fighters also showcased their talent with UAE boxer Ahmed Ali Al-Mansuri defeating fellow Emirati Zayed Al-Zaabi in the junior light bantamweight (52 kg) final.

Qatar celebrated two titles in the junior age group, with Yousef Mohammed Abdelhad winning gold in the lightweight (60 kg) category after beating Recardo Fostnela. And Ali Reda Rushan had a narrow victory over Ahmed Zeyad Sajed in the junior light welterweight (63 kg) division.

Bahrain’s Ali Bukhlaf, 18, one of the most experienced youth boxers in the Gulf region, proved his pedigree in Abu Dhabi by knocking out the UAE’s Mohammed Taha to win the youth welterweight (67 kg) category.

Jawaher