The press conference was held at the Duna Arena, where there were mentions regarding current information about the Hungarian team, as well the special ring design.
As known, Budapest is hosting the 2018 AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships between August 21-31. The Duna Arena was one of the most emblematic venues of the 17th FINA World Championships last year, where now the boxers will step between the ropes of the rings, that will be overspread the competition pool, covered up with a unique technology for this event. Both participants and spectators will have an extraordinary experience, as the matches will be held in such special rings, where only last year, there were world champion swimmers competing against each other, and beating world records.
Firstly, Zsolt Erdei, the President of the Hungarian Boxing Federation, spoke about the importance of the event: “One of our greatest goal, is to get Hungary discovered again on the world’s boxing map. With a successful execution, we can also advance ahead in the field of sports diplomacy, as well as taking the steps towards hosting other prestigious competitions in the future. That is why, it is especially important to graduate well here, so international leaders will recognize our efforts. “
The front man of our association has also mentioned, that he is expecting the participation of over 500 boxers at the tournament. There will be 9 boys and 7 girls entering the competition under the colors of red-white-green flag, however, these numbers may increase by one or two people by June 30th. “Exactly these types of events can be a huge motivation for the younger generations, as they can experience their hard work being paid off. But we shouldn’t only try to persuade the kids into the beauty of boxing. We also want to address the parents, so it is very important how we communicate. All of our age groups are on the right track, and we are extremely confident in the success of our junior reinforcements“, concludes our former Olympic bronze medalist.
From our former world-class champion boxer, the co-director of the event took over, whom was represented by Éva Szántó, managing director of Bp2017 Nonprofit Kft. She has emphasized the following “the Duna Arena is a multifunctional facility, which was designed with deliberate planning, in order to fulfill the requirements of all types of events. Although, it may be surprising that we are working on a “dry surface”, following a series of “wet” events, from FINA ” World Cup last year to the synchronized swimming world cup and the water polo super-finals this year. For us, all sports are equally important, and we want to continue the work we’ve started in recent years, sharing the accumulated knowledge and experience. “
After the so-called “wet” events, the organizers are facing new challenges on the technical front, as the two boxing rings are being constructed to overspread the 50-meter long competition pool. By flipping through the great almanac of boxing history, it turns out, that earlier legends had achieved great results competing under similar circumstances. In 1948, at the London Olympics, László Papp had won his first gold medal in middleweight, where the ring was built on an overspread swimming pool. We sincerely hope, that similarly to 70 year ago, this method will be presenting likely news to all local sports fans this time around, as well.
Csaba Varga, the Operations Director of the Duna Arena, shared great news regarding the technology by saying: “The Duna Arena, as the most modern and well-equipped facility of our nation, is completely in-line with AIBA’s requirements. By covering the competition pool, we can increase the game field, so that the two rings can fit perfectly. When designing a temporary structure, we had to take into account the composition of the water, the acquisition of the equipments, as well as the work process. The assembly and subsequent dismantling of the entire construction will take up to 24 hours, requiring the hard work of 6 divers and 30 construction workers. Therefore, we will be able to transform one of the world’s most recent and modern sports facilities, in such a short time. “
There is no world championship without a good mascot. Naturally, an event, which is only less than a couple of months away, cannot begin with an absence of a symbol properly reflecting Hungarians, as well as the combative spirit of the sport. Therefore, the Hungarian gray cattle were picked. This is a strong and native animal, both representing the bull and cow, whom will be proudly pulling the gloves on to become the official mascot figures of the AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships. The mascot “fighters” are almost completely ready; they are just waiting to be named. We are asking boxing fans to submit their votes to name our mascots on the official Facebook page of the Hungarian Boxing Federation.
Go to Hungary, Go Hungarian Boxing!!!