Women boxers strike gold

While the women bouts will not be counted among the team points to decide the overall team championships, the fans were nevertheless treated with three action packed bouts.

Leslie Ann Quallis of Guyana out-pointed Nicole Scott of Barbados 12-9 in a featherweight clash; and TT’s Elizabeth Burke got the better of Marie Laboney of Martinique when the referee stopped the contest at 53-seconds of the second round. Laboney at the time was being outclassed 22-2 in their lightweight match-up.

And in the other women’s contest Guadeloupe’s Nadia Ballot defeated local girl Wendy Allan on points 21-17 in the welterweight division.

Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago have sent the most boxers to the gold medal matches.

Five Barbadians are into finals — Keithland King (welterweight), Jeffrey Hinds (lightweight), Junior Greenidge (middleweight), Shawn Terry Cox (light heavyweight), and Anderson Emanuel (heavyweight).

For TT they are Keryne Jochin (heavyweight), Aaron Prince (lightweight), Aaron Hassette and Kurt Blackwell (light welterweight).

Guyana’s Leon Carter has booked his place in the novices welterweight final along with Fitzroy Richardson, who is into the senior light heavyweight final.

Carl Heild of the Bahamas is favoured to win the light welterweight title, while his compatriot James McKenzie reached the super heavyweight final without breaking a sweat because his opponent failed to keep their date.

However, the most attractive fighter of the championship to date is John Jackson, of the US Virgin islands.

He’s one of two sons of former three-time world champion Junior Jackson participating at the championship.

John is the clear favourite to win the junior welterweight gold medal after the referee stopped his one-sided junior division welterweight contest with Joseph Williams of TT at 1:39 seconds of the fourth round.

Jackson was leading the fight 36-8.