Erislandy Alvarez Borges has defeated a hometown favorite to win gold at the 2024 Paris Games.
In the much-anticipated 63.5kg boxing final at the 2024 Summer Olympics, the 24-year-old Cuban boxer beat France’s Sofiane Oumiha 3-2 to earn gold in his Olympic debut in front of a packed crowd at the iconic Roland-Garros Stadium.
This marks the first and only boxing gold medal for Cuba at Paris 2024, a former Olympic powerhouse in the sport.
“I am very happy. He [Oumiha] is a very strong rival,” Alvarez said afterwards. “I had a lot of changes since the world championships. Thank God I got the gold medal which is what we promised, for me and for Cuba.
“All I’m thinking now is rest so I can have time to keep bringing gold medals back to Cuba.”
The two medalists advanced out of the semi-final rounds on Sunday, which saw Oumiha beat Canada’s Wyatt Sanford 4-1 to advance to the final. The second semi-final saw Alvarez beat Georgia’s Lasha Guruli 5-0. Both Sanford and Guruli were awarded bronze medals.
This is the first Olympic Games for Alvarez, who previously trained as a gymnast before committing to boxing.
He dedicated the gold medal to those who helped him become an Olympic champion, including “my grandmother, who sadly passed away, and I dedicate it to my country and to my old teacher who told me that I could achieve great things.”
Oumiha was under an incredible amount of pressure competing at home in France. On Sunday, after advancing to the final over Sanford, he said, “The wound of Tokyo [2020] is still there. It was dramatic for me. I was No.1 in the world ranking and I lost in the first round.
“The wound is not healed. There is also Rio [2016], where I lost in the final. I know what it’s like to lose a final, but I also know what it is like to win one.”
Oumiha was disappointed in Wednesday’s loss to Alvarez. “I am so disappointed as I wanted the gold medal,” he said afterwards. “The fight didn’t go the way that I wanted.”
