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Russian ladies favorites at European boxing championship
Published: 15 September, 2009, 12:28
The Russian female boxing team has entered the European Championships as favorites, with the places in the first ever Olympic squad at stake for the ladies.
Women's boxing was recognized by the International Olympic Committee earlier this year, and will be represented in London in 2012.
As a result, massive media attention has been given to the Russian team.
“We've never seen so many TV cameras at our training sessions. That's an obvious consequence of our sport becoming part of the summer games. We still need to get used to this kind of attention,” Viktor Lisitsyn said.
Lisitsyn's team is the favorite to win the European Championships in Ukraine.
They won three gold medals in Denmark two years ago. The competition for each weight division is now even tougher and the boxers regard every tournament as a chance to earn their place in history.
“We've got a very big team. Therefore, to become an Olympian you have to get through a lot of qualifying events. The European finals is just one of them,” boxer Sofya Ochigava said.
Sofya Ochigava is just 22, but she will be Russia's captain in Ukraine. She's already won a European title twice, but this week's event is a new challenge even for her.
Ochigava will make her debut in the under-57 kilogram weight division.
“This is an Olympic category and I just want to try it. Even though it's quite long to go until the London games, I'd like to have more practice in this group – maybe even winning European gold,” she said.
It's almost three years to go until the summer games in 2012, but Russia's female elite insist their sight is firmly set on the upcoming tournament in Ukraine.
Nonetheless, there are very few who do not have the thought of a return ticket to Heathrow sitting at the back of their minds.
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