Sheffield’s Teagn Stott bowed out of the final day of the World Boxing Championships with a silver medal after he was beaten unanimously by Uzbekistan’s Akmaljon Isroilov in the cruiserweight (85kg) final.
It marks the end of a memorable campaign for Stott, who enjoyed two solid wins over opponents from Ukraine and Czechia, as well as an explosive stoppage victory over Bulgaria’s Semion Boldirev. The result continues a fine year for the 22-year-old, who was crowned U22 European champion last year.
Elsewhere, England Boxing’s Performance Pathway squad member Emily Asquith also picked up a silver medal following defeat to Australia’s Eseta Flint in the light-heavyweight (80kg) final.
Stott and Asquith’s results confirm that England will leave the inaugural World Boxing Championships with five medals: two silver and three bronze.
Stott said: “If I’m honest, I didn’t think I did enough to win, but I’m sure when I watch it back, there will be things that I did well and things I still need to work on.
“I’m disappointed now, but I’m sure I’ll be proud in the next few days.
“We’ve been saying all week to the rest of the team that haven’t quite got the decisions, or not quite got over the line, that it’s only losing if you don’t learn from it. So, I’ll take that loss now as a lesson and pick it apart—analyse the bout, every millisecond of it—and come back even better.”
England’s other bronze medallists include hometown heroes Odel Kamara (M70kg), Callum Makin (75kg), and Chantelle Reid (W70kg), with all three competing four times during the competition.
Looking back on their campaigns, Kamara had the M&S Bank Arena bouncing on more than one occasion, having forced counts on his preliminary-round opponents from Kosovo and Canada before putting in another assured display to secure a medal against Mongolia. He eventually fell in a split decision to eventual gold medallist Torekhan Sabyrkhan of Kazakhstan in the semi-finals.
Kamara said: “Honestly, I’m still gutted. I thought I could have done more. I thought I could have got the win, but we move forward, we improve, and we learn from our mistakes. I’ll be better next time.
“It brought a smile to my face seeing the crowd cheer me on when I was stood on the podium. They’ve been with me throughout the whole tournament and have pushed me to no end. I’m forever grateful.
“It’s been an honour to represent my city and box for the first time in the M&S Arena—or ‘the Echo’ as us Scousers know it. The whole competition has been unbelievable.”
For Makin, who was handed a tough draw at a new weight, he advanced through the opening stages by defeating Croatia’s Petar Krešimir Knežević, then winning a close split decision over a Polish opponent, before beating Joshua Ofori of Canada to clinch his medal. His campaign ended in the semi-final against Bulgaria’s Rami Kiwan.
Makin said: “This medal means everything. I’m top three in the world, so I can’t complain. That said, it shows me I’ve still got improvements to make and better things to strive for.
“It’s been an unbelievable tournament; it’s been the best week of my life. I’ve had nothing but unbelievable support from everyone that’s come out and supported me, and yeah, it’s everything that I’ve dreamed of.”
Lastly, Reid, who now finds herself ranked in the top four women in the world, having only re-joined the World Class Programme (WCP) at GB Boxing just over six weeks ago put in some memorable displays.
Her path included numerous victories by unanimous decision against opponents from New Zealand, Poland, and China, until she found herself on the wrong end of a tight semi-final loss to Kazakhstan’s Natalya Bogdanova, who went on to claim gold.
Reid said: “I’m proud of my performances. I’ve had four good bouts.
“Every bout is just perfect preparation for the end goal. So between now and LA, I’ll get more fights, more sparring, more training, more learning and I’ll get that gold medal at the Olympic Games.”
Overall, GB Boxers’ performance at the World Boxing Championships saw 16 members of the squad enter the competition, with nine reaching the quarter-final stages, including the four medallists.
Performance Director Rob McCracken said: “The boxers have performed very well at the World Championships here in Liverpool. Four medals is a brilliant achievement for this young team at this stage in the Olympic cycle.
“Five boxers also reached the quarter-final stages, showing the depth of potential within this team. It has the foundations of one that can go on to achieve further success between now and the LA Olympics in just under three years’ time.
“It’s been fantastic for the boxers to experience a major championship of such high quality on home soil. This has allowed them to share their achievements with friends and family, and I thank everyone involved in the organisation of a fantastic World Championships for men and women.”
