(Reuters) – Chang Yuan became the first woman boxer to win Olympic gold for China by beating Turkey’s Hatice Akbas by unanimous decision in the women’s bantamweight final at the Olympics yesterday.
Pang Chol-mi of North Korea and South Korea’s Im Ae-ji took bronze after their semi-final defeats. Former Asian Games champion Chang was light on her feet as she peppered Akbas with jabs in a fight where few punches were thrown and both boxers took their time to test the water. Chang, 27, spent the first two rounds stalking her Turkish opponent around the ring and showcased great defence as Akbas struggled to find any openings. With the points racking up against her, Akbas attempted to salvage the bout with a rapid start in the final round. She let loose with a quick flurry, but quickly realised it was a bad idea after Chang sidestepped her shots and landed a jab straight down the middle, eventually taking a 5-0 win.
“I’ve given the team from China the best I could, the gold medal. Hopefully, others can do the same,” Chang said.
“It was so exciting to see the flag and hear the national anthem when I got my gold medal.”
Chang is the third Chinese boxer to win a gold medal at the Olympics, joining twice light-flyweight champion Zou Shiming and 2008 light-heavyweight winner Zhang Xiaoping.
She is also the first-ever women’s bantamweight champion at the Olympics, with the category making its debut at this Games.
