Cuba’s Roniel Iglesias bagged a gold medal at Tokyo Olympics 2020 after he beat Great Britain’s Pat McCormack 5-0 in the men’s welterweight final. Iglesias’ victory has propelled Cuba’s medal tally to four in this year’s Olympics.
Iglesias started the opening round on the offense and kept the pressure until the end.
In the final round, the boxer hit McCormack with a left hand, forcing him to stumble backward. Though a competitive fight, Iglesias was awarded all three rounds. McCormack cheered the Cuban boxing veteran even before the results were announced.
Another #Boxing medal for Cuba! #CUB
Congratulations to Roniel Iglesias on winning #gold in the men’s welterweight division.#StrongerTogether @Tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/Pj7U1Xbcap
— Olympics (@Olympics) August 3, 2021
The 32-year-old has had a gradual improvement in his glovework over the years.
He won bronze in 2008 in the Beijing Games and became the light welterweight champion in 2012 in London. In 2016, he lost early in the Rio Olympics but lived up to his name this year, becoming only the 10th man in boxing history to win three medals in three Olympic campaigns.
Team GB – Great Britain — did not make it big against the Cuban strength, but they have impressed the boxing fraternity with overall performance in the Games, securing a record boxing haul at Tokyo 2020.
They are set to bring home six Olympic medals — something that no one has achieved since 1920.
Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua was quick to congratulate the six boxers who made history. He had posted a story on his Instagram.
Iglesias also made some other history of his own. He joined Felix Savon, Teofilo Stevenson and Lazaro Alvarez – who won his third bronze yesterday in the games – as the only three-time boxing medalist in Cuba’s decorated history.
“I have such great feelings and emotions after winning the gold medal in London first, but then having lots of difficulties,” Iglesias said through a translator, reported via ESPN. “Boxing is a very tough sport, but I was able to overcome those difficulties and I was able to clinch this title, which is so important to me. I think that my discipline, my tenacity in training helped me get here.”