Article by Tibor Kincsis

Canada and Mexico won key contests at the AMBC Continental Championships on Day 2 of competition.

The AMBC Women’s and Men’s Elite Boxing Championships proceeded with 27 contests in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Some of the first guaranteed medallists were revealed in a few of the women’s weight categories in the second day of boxing. Mexico and Canada produced fantastic competition in the championship, and their boxers won key contests on Day 2.

Boxers who were born between 1982 and 2003 are eligible to compete in the AMBC Continental Championships. There are neutral referees and judges from Europe in the competition to ensure fair play in Guayaquil, which hosted its last AMBC event for the elite women boxers in 2009.

Altogether, 197 boxers are attending the AMBC Continental Championships from 25 countries. The number of the female boxers is a record number of 75, and the most popular category is featherweight (57kg) with the participation of 11 boxers. 122 male boxers are competing for the thirteen available male titles where the lightweight (60kg) and the light welterweight (63.5kg) are the most popular categories with 14-14 boxers on the board.

Among the titleholders of the competition are Colombia’s Yeni Marcela Arias, Brazil’s AIBA Women’s World Champion Beatriz Ferreira, Argentina’s Lucia Noelia Perez, and Canada’s Tammara Thibeault will be there in Guayaquil to defend their titles, which they earned in Tegucigalpa five years ago.

Mexico’s Cesar Donovan Morales was confident on Day 2. He competed at the Belgrade 2021 AIBA Men’s Elite World Boxing Championships and got some international experiences in the Serbian capital. The young Mexican won several national events in the recent three years and arrived to Guayaquil in top form. The Mexican light welterweight (63.5kg) controlled the first round with his speed against Paraguay’s Facundo Javier Forcado, and he managed the remainder of the bout to join to the quarter-finals where his next opponent will be Ecuador’s new national team member, Jhancarlo Anchico Mina. His compatriot, the experienced Hector Octavio Aguirre, stopped Colombia’s Juan Diego Ortiz and delivered another top Mexican performance in the second competition day.

Verde and Rangel marched to the quarter-finals at the light middleweight. Marco Alonso Verde attended the Kielce 2021 AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships and the Belgrade AIBA Men’s Elite World Boxing Championships in the last 12 months. The Mexican turned 20 last month and proved his progress in the first preliminary round of the light middleweight (71kg). Verde met with the Dominican Republic’s Noel Pacheco and he overcame his rival in most of the attacks. The Mexican won his contest by split decision and will now meet in the final eight with Barbados’ Tyreec Taitt who got the bye in the official draw. Colombia’s Alexander Rangel defeated Saint Lucia’s Kyghan Mortley in the same weight category, winning all of the three rounds.

Guatemala and Argentina secured medals at the women’s minimumweight. Guatemala’s Aylin Dayana Jamez, who claimed the silver medal already at the 2017 Central American Games, was too experienced for Trinidad & Tobago’s Ornella Faith Ramnath in the quarter-finals of the women’s minimumweight (48kg). The Guatemalan won all of the three rounds in each of the judges’ scorecards, and she is a guaranteed medallist in Guayaquil where her next opponent will be Colombia’s Adiela Maria Dora Fuentes. Argentina’s Aldana Florencia Lopez was unbeaten in 2021 and returned from the professional world to get a medal in the AMBC American Elite Boxing Championships. The Argentinean succeeded and advanced to the semi-finals after beating Ecuador’s Daniela Nicole Tenorio.

Canada’s Thibeault eliminated her main rival already on Day 2. Canada’s AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships bronze medallist Tammara Thibeault arrived to the venue of the AMBC Continental Championships as titleholder and recovered from her shoulder injury. She met with her main rival, United States’ veteran Naomi Graham, first at the middleweight (75kg). The final-level bout delivered a close battle between the two experienced boxers which was won by the younger Canadian, eliminating a star in Guayaquil. Her teammates, Priyanka Dhillon and Scarlett Delgado, were excellent at the women’s minimumweight and bantamweight and defeated Puerto Rico’s new national team member, Belisa Lopez De Jesus, and Dominican Republic’s Estefani Almanzar de Leon, respectively.

Paraguay, United States, and Puerto Rico won key contests at the women’s featherweight. The women’s featherweight (57kg) is a crowded category in the competition with eleven boxers competing for the medals in Guayaquil. Three contests were featured in the first preliminary round for the quarter-finals, and all of them delivered fantastic bouts. Firstly, Paraguay’s best boxer, Minerva Magali Montiel, proved her technical skills against Ecuador’s Jamilex Leonela Salas and advanced to the final eight. The United States’ virtuoso Amelia Moore, who moved down two weight categories, followed her and defeated Honduras’ Maria Fernanda Antunez. Puerto Rico’s Ashley Ann Lozada delivered the main sensation of the day when she eliminated Brazil’s Cologne Boxing World Cup winner and Bocskai Memorial Tournament gold medalist Jucielen Romeu in the last bout of the session.

The participating nations in the AMBC Championships are Argentina, Aruba, Barbados, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Fair Chance Team, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia, Sint Maarten, Trinidad & Tobago, and the United States of America.

Twenty-five bouts for guaranteed medals are scheduled to be held on the third competition day at the AMBC Continental Championships in Guayaquil, Ecuador on Saturday. The Championships are live streamed through the IBA YouTube channel.


For more information visit Boxing Canada’s event page and the AMBC Continental Championships website.

Campeonato Continental Élite de Boxeo Masculino-Femenino Guayaquil 2022