Top national boxers dominate Golden Gloves championship

JAKARTA (JP): The Bahari brothers, Nemo and Pino, lived up to their father's expectations as national top pugilists overpowered their unrated rivals at the Golden Gloves championships concluded in Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi, on Saturday.

Nemo punched his way to the tournament's best boxer after he won a unanimous point decision over unheralded Royke Waney of North Sulawesi in their four-round featherweight finale.

North Sulawesi, one of the country's former strongest boxing powerhouses, earned consolation as welterweight Audi Runtupalit, who outpointed Ivan Pioh of Jakarta, was awarded the favorite boxer tag. Audi produced an impressive win over red-hot favorite Aswin Cabui in the semifinals.

Boxers grouped in the national team, composed of seven pugilists who will represent Indonesia in the 12th Asian Games in Hiroshima in October, hauled in five golds and a silver during Saturday's 10 finals contested at Mattoangin sport hall.

All attention was drawn to the long-awaited big match pitting two top national pugilists, Pino and Albert Papilaya. Thunderous applause filled the sport hall as both top guns fought all the way for the middleweight title.

The spectators, however, had to concede that Pino clinched a narrow win during the exhausting four-round fight.

However, Pino, the 1990 Asian Games gold medalist in the middleweight division, left a big question hanging around after his victory. The national amateur boxing body (Pertina) had asked him to move to the heavier category in Hiroshima and named Albert to take his place. The Denpasar native, however, insisted on fighting in his ideal division.

A controversial decision tainted the championships jointly held by Pertina and the Indonesian Journalist Association (PWI). The organizers sustained a protest lodged by the host team, which wanted to give pinweight Johannis Atbar, a semifinalist who lost to Amos Anima of Irian Jaya, a place in the final.

Johannis stepped into the ring in the final only to crash to a defeat to Usman Tabani of West Nusa Tenggara. (amd)