Kazakhstan tops the medal table at the inaugural World Boxing Championships 2025 thanks to victory in the final bout of the competition
A thrilling final day of action at the World Boxing Championships 2025 in Liverpool saw Kazakhstan’s Aibek Oralbay defeat Jahhongir Zokirov of Uzbekistan in the 520th and final bout of the competition to win the super-heavyweight (M90kg+) gold medal and ensure his country topped the final medal table with seven golds, one silver and two bronze.
Although Uzbekistan secured a higher medal count with 11, it won fewer golds and had to settle for second place in the medal table, with six golds, two silver and three bronze.
After 10 days of high-class competition at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, the final day evolved into a shoot-out between the two Asian superpowers which, remarkably, won every one of the men’s categories between them.
It proved to be a superb closing day for Kazakhstan which won seven of the eight finals its boxers contested, the only reverse coming in the first bout of the day when Nazym Kyzaibay lost to India’s Minakshi Minakshi at light-flyweight (W48kg).
The final outcome at the top of the medal table hinged on two direct matchups between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which came out on top in both.
The women’s welterweight (W65kg) final between Navbakhor Khamidova of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan’s Aida Abikeyeva was one of the best bouts of the day and after two hard fought rounds between, the Uzbek seemed to have the upper hand. However, the combination of a point off from the referee and terrific onslaught by Abikeyeva saw the Kazak fight back to win 3-0 on the judges’ scorecards. It was a similar story in the last bout of the night where Oralbay won the final round on four judges’ cards to secure the narrowest of 3-2 victories.
Speaking via an interpreter in the mixed zone after her welterweight victory, Abikeyev said: “Today is the final. I set a personal goal before Liverpool to become a two-time world champion. Thank God, I reached it. This is the first one. This is for my grandfather. Thanks for the support, Kazakhstan.”
Other countries which won gold medals on the day included India, Chinese Taipei, Brazil and Ireland – all of them coming in the women’s categories.
The day began with nine bouts in the afternoon session which saw victories for Kazakhstan’s Sanzhar Tashkenbay at flyweight (M50kg) and Makhmud Sabrykhan at bantamweight (M55kg), while Uzbekistan enjoyed success with wins for welterweight (65kg) Asadkhuja Muydinkhjaev, light-heavyweight Javokhir Ummataliev and heavyweight (W90kg) Turabek Khabibullaev.
The pick of the bouts was the women’s lightweight final between Brazil’s Rebecca De Lima Santos and Aneta Rygielska of Poland. The contest could have gone either way and hinged on a strong second round from the Brazilian, which managed to give her a big enough lead to weather a final round onslaught from the Pole and edge the result 3-2.
Another boxer to impress was Ireland’s Aoife O’Rourke, who took control of her middleweight final from the first bell and was rarely troubled on route to a 5-0 win over Busra Isildar of Turkey.
O’Rourke said: “I feel incredible, it hasn’t even sunk in yet. Just the whole buzz and the atmosphere here is just, I’m overwhelmed with excitement, enjoyment, everything. It’s an amazing feeling and long may it last.”
The evening session featured nine more finals which were dominated by Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
The men’s lightweight final had all the makings of a classic as Brazil’s Luis De Oliveira clashed with Paris 2024 gold medalist Abdumalik Khalokov of Uzbekistan, however it was cut short when an accidental clash of heads led the ringside Doctor to halt the contest. It went to the judges who had Khalokov leading on every card and meant he has now won gold at both the Olympic Games and the World Boxing Championships, without dropping a round.
For the home nation, it proved to be a frustrating final session as cruiserweight Teagn Stott and light heavyweight, Emily Asquith, both lost their finals, however the overall competition has been a major success for the hosts that delivered a fantastic Championships in Liverpool and saw English boxers win five medals, including two for hometown boxers, Callum Makin and Odel Kamara, who lit up the tournament.
The President of World Boxing, Boris van der Vorst, said: “We could not have wished for a better place to host out inaugural World Boxing Championships and I would like to thank the Local Organizing Committee and all of the event partners, GB Boxing, England Boxing, Liverpool City Council, UK Sport and the National Lottery for delivering a fantastic event.
“All of the feedback I have heard from boxers, coaches and officials this week has been very positive, and everyone has been very happy with the organization, staging and delivery of the event. It has been a festival of world class boxing and has set a very high standard for all future World Boxing events and championships.”
The final medal table can be viewed HERE.
RESULTS:
All of today’s results are available at: https://www.worldboxingliverpool.com/competition-documents.
