Aus Olympic Boxing Schedules/Results

Aussie Olympic fighters boxing strong

Australia's Olympic boxing team has overcome initial disruption to Games preparations to present a united front a week out from competition.
The team of 11, including Australia's first female Olympic boxer Naomi Fischer-Rasmussen, has been training in Belfast since Tuesday and section manager Phillip Goodes said the squad is sharp and focused.
"We're focused on more short and explosive training now. All the hard work has been done back in Australia and it's coming together well," Goodes told AAP on Saturday.
The Australians paired up with fighters from Ecuador's Olympic team on Friday for some light sparring work.
"Those boys will be the opposition as well, depending on the draw, so even though it was only some light partner work, it was a confidence boost for our boys to make a good showing," Goodes said.
The Australian team's preparations haven't all been smooth with medal prospect Damien Hooper removed from the Canberra training camp mid-June after a series of unspecified behavioural breaches involving coaches and fellow squad members.
Schoolboy heavyweight Jai Opetaia, 17, was banned from the team's earlier seven-week European tour for missing 19 training sessions before the Oceania championships in March.
He eventually re-joined the squad in Canberra along with his father and trainer Martin.
Goodes said Opetaia has been training well in Belfast, where he has been without his father.
"He has adapted very well and certainly been training very well, with no signs of stress or homesickness at all. He's blending in well with the crew and looking very sharp," Goodes said of the youngest Olympic boxer ever selected for Australia.
Light heavyweight medal favourite Hooper, 20, is also impressing team management.
"He's got a lot of natural talent and when he wants to turn it on, he will ... and that means he will be quite a danger to his opposition in the Games," Goodes said.
With no injury complaints to report, the team is due to arrive in London on Wednesday.
"It's just a matter of keeping focused now and especially when we get into the (Olympic) village when distractions will no doubt come into play."
http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/sport/a/-/other/14326574/aussie-olympic-fighters-boxing-strong/

 

Odd-one-out Naomi packs a punch


NO BILLION dollar baby, Naomi Fischer-Rasmussen quit her job, has lived on next to nothing, and relied on her parents' fundraising efforts in order to make a historic Olympic berth in London............


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/olympics/news...cks-a-punch-20120725-22ofb.html#ixzz21bMUOhuc

 

Olympic boxing hopeful Johan Linde can't wait for shot at Olympic glory


OLYMPIC boxing hopeful Johan Linde won't let tensions in the Australian boxing team distract him from his gold medal dream.

The South Australian super heavyweight, in lockdown in Canberra, is aware of controversies surrounding the national boxing squad but is firmly focussed on his own preparation.

Last week medal prospect Damien Hooper, from Queensland, was removed from the camp after a series of behavioural breaches involving coaches and fellow squad members.

"These things can happen, but we're all assuming he's (Hooper) going to be back pretty soon," Linde said.

"I was hoping to get back to Adelaide before we left but they (Australian coaches) have been pretty strict on our movements.

"We're effectively in lockdown until we get on the plane."

Even before the elite camp began Australia boxing coach Don Abnett called on NSW schoolboy heavyweight Jai Opetaia to put an end to their feud and join his teammates at the Australian Institute of Sport.

The 16-year-old, who had been training in the US with his father, only agreed to rejoin the camp this week.

Linde, who has taken unpaid leave from his job with the SA Department of Treasury and Finance, is one of the oldest fighters on the team but is still a novice at the highest level of the sport.

The 29-year-old faced highly-rated Englishman Anthony Joshua in Lithuania recently and took a number of hard fought lessons from the defeat.

"It was a very tough fight but I can't wait to fight him again," Linde said.

"I've taken a lot away from it given my relative inexperience at this level.

"The dream would be to take him on in an Olympic final fighting for a gold medal and that's what I want."

Joshua is ranked second in the world after losing a controversial decision to local fighter Magomedrasul Majidov in the final of the world championships in Azerbaijan last year.

Linde secured an Olympic berth with a shock knockout in March of Tongan Uaine Fa in the first round of the Oceania qualifying final.

The supremely fit fighter and economics graduate has recently completed a whirlwind world tour of tournaments and training.

"We trained in China which went great and then we went to Thailand but I got a fair dose of Bangkok belly.

"I won silver in a tournament in Serbia and then picked up a bronze in Lithuania."

The Olympic boxing team leaves for Northern Ireland on July 16 to acclimatise and heads to the Olympic village a week later.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/l...at-olympic-glory/story-fn9dheyx-1226408009898

 

Thu 26 - 7pm AOC Team Reception & Flag Bearer Announcement
Fri 27 - 7am General Weigh-in & Medical
Fri 27 - 2pm Competition Draw
Fri 27 - 9pm Opening Ceremony
Everyday 8am Weigh-in
2 sessions of boxing per day

info from Boxing Australia facebook.

 

good video interview of Jai Opetaia;

http://www.theherald.com.au/news/lo...ralias-2012-olympic-hopes-boxing/2631953.aspx