The decisive day of the Russian Boxing Championship was marked by a fantastic achievement that will be extremely difficult to beat in the foreseeable future. Two-time Olympic medalist Andrei Zamkovoy added another brilliant victory to his extensive collection of awards, which became a record.

“I’m not going to sit on the sidelines”

Zamkovoy achieved big victories when some of the participants in the current Russian championship did not go to school yet. In 2009 Andrey won a silver medal at the World Championships. Gold, however, had to wait ten years. Only at the tournament in Yekaterinburg did the boxer finally find himself on the highest step of the podium.

In addition, Zamkova twice became the winner of the Olympic Games. In London and Tokyo, he won bronze medals. The athlete’s victories at the Russian championships stand apart. Before the competition in Khabarovsk, Andrey took gold seven times.

The 36-year-old Zamkovoi, not aging in soul, came to the Far East determined to win the eighth title. But the beginning of the tournament turned out to be difficult for him. Andrey himself admitted this.

– I boxed with an athlete from St. Petersburg. He is very good and promising. Have noticed it for a long time. Of course, they did not box in official competitions in pairs. It was very hard for him. And he knew that the fight would not be easy. But still, training and a competitive ring are completely different. Somewhere it worked, somewhere it didn’t. Let’s learn, it will be a lesson. We will prepare for the next fight,” Zamkovoy said on Match TV.

The second fight also remained with Andrey, but after it the problems only increased. Zamkova received a deep dissection of the eyebrow. A boxer faces such injuries throughout his career. But this time, nothing could stop the seven-time champion. He made it to the final in the weight category up to 71 kg, where his opponent was a young and promising local boxer Ivan Stupin.

Last year, the Far Eastern athlete took second place in his weight category. He has the gold of the European Youth Championship, as well as a victory at the World Championship among military personnel.

Vanya is a strong boxer. He was in the final last year, and now he will prove that he deserves to be the first. But I’m not going to sit on the sidelines and will also try to become the best, – Zamkova said after the semi-finals.

Andrey Zamkovoy / Photo: © Boxing Federation of Russia

“I dreamed about this for a long time”

Andrei started this fight at a distance, while Ivan waited for his opponent’s mistakes. But Zamkova, as an experienced boxer, did nothing extra. The smashing jab caused a lot of problems for a younger opponent. At the end of the starting segment, Zamkovoy had an excellent series, each blow of which was felt by Stupin.

In the second round, Ivan went to rehabilitate himself from the very first seconds. He even pinned a more experienced opponent in the corner, but it was only a temporary burst of activity. Zamkovoy adapted to the opponent’s changed style and over and over again met him with a jab.

In the third segment, age began to affect Andrey’s activity. The younger Stupin openly pressed, but the colossal experience helped the seven-time champion here too. He competently knitted his opponent, without unnecessary dirt. This brought Zamkovy the victory by unanimous decision and the eighth title in his career.

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“I dreamed about this for a long time. So far, no one has achieved this in Russia. But nothing, there will be an incentive for young boxers to beat or at least repeat this achievement. Congratulations to all my team. The young boys I train with are pushing me. I see the fire in their eyes and it gives me strength. You always need to learn, – Zamkova revealed the secret of success after the fight.

Andrei has not yet announced his retirement, but he wants to think things over carefully before making new plans. It is not excluded that we will see the legendary boxer in the fight for the ninth championship.

Live broadcasts of boxing tournaments can be seen on Match TV and Match! Fighter”, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.