The UAE’s Khadoum Al Kaabi took centre-stage winning the night’s lone amateur fight at the World Arab Boxing Championships held at the Dubai Tennis Stadium.
Al Kaabi was declared winner on an unanimous decision against Yemeni challenger Abdullah Mohsin in the 65kg amateur category, while Lorena Klinj from Holland upset defending champion Kiel Holtz, of Colombia, to be crowned the new women’s middleweight 66kg champion.
The bout between the UAE champion and his Yemeni challenger was evenly matched, but it was Al Kaabi’s more aggressive approach that ultimately won him the fight.
The fight between Holtz and Klinj was even throughout most of the six rounds they sparred. But a sudden lurch forward from the Colombian boxer saw her get a deep gash over her left eye forcing the French referee to call off the fight midway through the sixth.
Klinj was thrilled at the avenues this win could possibly open for her young career. “For sure, this win is just the beginning for me. I challenged myself and proved that I can take on the best and win against a world champion,” Klinj said.
Surinam’s two-time world champion Dolly McBean and Turkey’s Hatice Ozyurt both retained their titles, with the African girl knocking out Dutch challenger Raquel Adams in the fifth round of their featherweight fight, while Ozyurt kept her superlight 63kg belt with an unanimous decision against Moroccan Ghizlan Al Aazri.
In the other fights, Morocco’s Khadija Al Dabali used her leg kick to perfection to dethrone two-time world champion Natalie Maurel of France in the flyweight 50kg, while Tunisia’s Haifa Ouersighni beat Noura Ali of Egypt in their Flyweight 61kgs amateur bout.
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