August 22, 2009
August 22, 2009
OSAKA, JAPAN
WBA female 105-pound champ Etsuko Tada (5-0, 2 KOs), a Japanese lefty sharpshooter with a 47-3 amateur mark, will put her belt on the line against unbeaten Thai challenger Yani Kokietgym (6-0, no KO) tomorrow (Sunday) in Osaka, Japan.
At the press conference prior to the weigh-in ceremony, the newly crowned champ Tada, 28, looked a little nervous, while Yani, 20, modest and quiet. Tada, known by her flamboyance and loud voice, seemed to be surprisingly humble, though she had been often called “manly” girl because of her big heart and mouth. Tada said, “I won’t exclusively look for a KO victory, but hope to win by a knockout. If I can do as usual, I’ll show a fine win before the crowd.” Yani, whose blood pulse was amazingly 47, may show her good stamina in her first world title shot.
Tada, the defending champ, scaled in at 104 pounds to 103 for Yani, who is four inches shorter than the 5’4” champ.
The WBA officials are as follows:
Referee Ferdinand Estrella (Philippines); judges Byungki Kim, Wontak Yoon and Kwangwoo Lee (all from Korea); and supervisor Tsuyoshi Yasukochi (Japan).
We just wish to see a good fight to heighten the status of the female boxing and overcome people’s prejudice against the women’s game.
(8-22-09)