site.btaSvetlana Kamenova Advances to Olympic Quarterfinals in Women's 57kg Boxing

Bulgarian boxer Svetlana Kamenova reached the quarterfinals in the 57kg category at the Paris Olympics on Friday. Kamenova, European champion, secured a resounding victory in her Olympic debut, defeating Ireland's Michaela Walsh with a unanimous score of 5:0.

The eighth-seeded Kamenova triumphed over Walsh, who is a vice-champion from the 2019 Krakow European Games and two-time European championship bronze medallist. Kamenova clinched a unanimous decision victory in all three rounds.

On August 4, Kamenova will face top seed Lin Yu-ting from Taiwan, reigning Asian Games champion. Yu-ting is a two-time world champion from the Istanbul 2022 and New Delhi 2018 tournaments. Yu-ting previously defeated Bulgarian boxer Stoyka Petrova in New Delhi, then Petrova secured the Olympic title in Tokyo 2020.

Transgender athletes Yu-ting and Imane Khelif, competing in the 66kg category, have been allowed to participate in women's Olympic events. Yu-ting started off with an categorical victory against Sitora Turdibekova from Uzbekistan.

Kamenova previously competed against Yu-ting at the World Championship quarterfinals in New Delhi. The Taiwanese competitor won the bronze, but was later disqualified, after the International Boxing Federation found that Yu-ting had failed the sex verification test, and the medal was awarded to Kamenova.