London Olympics: Japan's Shimizu reinstated after boxing appeal
Japan's Satoshi Shimizu was reinstated into the Olympic boxing competition on Thursday after winning an appeal over his controversial defeat to Magomed Abdulhamidov.
Japan's Satoshi Shimizu was reinstated into the Olympic boxing competition on Thursday after winning an appeal over his controversial defeat to Magomed Abdulhamidov.
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Azerbaijan's Abdulhamidov was awarded a 22-17 decision in Wednesday's bout, but the result has been changed to a third round stoppage win for Shimizu.
The appeal was made after second seed Abdulhamidov slumped to the canvas five times in the third and final round when he was close to exhaustion.
Not only did Shimizu greet the initial result with disbelief, but so too did the 10,000 strong crowd at ringside at London's Excel Arena.
Japan officials felt referee Ishanguly Meretnyyazov of Turkmenistan should have stopped the contest and claimed Abdulhamidov was given too much time to recover after he fell.
"I was so shocked by the result that I had to ask the referee if I had heard it correctly," Shimizu said after the fight.
"He fell down so many times (five times) in that last round, the fight should have been stopped."
Shimizu will now face Algeria's Mohamed Ouadahi on Sunday for a place in the quarter-finals.