World Series of Boxing: Team Lists For Week 2 Action

Lausanne, Switzerland – Such is the calibre of the athletes competing in the World Series of Boxing that eleven Olympians will be in action across three different continents this weekend as the tournament enters the second leg of the regular season.

The teams in the European conference will once again be the first to take to the ring this weekend as the Istanbulls welcome Milano Thunder and Moscow's Kremlin Bears travel to Paris on Friday. After the success of the Italian boxers in the home ring last week, Milano Thunder have dispatched a contingent of East European talent together with national middleweight Luca Podda to Turkey. The Istanbulls have selected four of the boxers who competed at last month's pre-season exhibition match against the Astana Arlans, including team captain Onur Sipal and 2008 Olympian Mohammed Arjaoui from Algeria. Mehmet Topcakan, who competed at lightweight for the exhibition match, has moved back down to his usual bantamweight, with rising star Shafiq Chitou filling the lightweight slot. The 24-year-old from Benin had arrived at the training camp for last year's world championships with little more than his gumshield, but impressed the WSB evaluators when he qualified for the final 16 on his international debut.

Paris United have chosen two Olympians from their national boxers, Nordine Oubaali at bantamweight and Alexis Vastine at middleweight, to delight the home crowd at the Halle Georges Carpentier tomorrow evening. The squad travelling from Moscow, consisting of three Russians and two Uzbeks, is young, with the oldest member only 23 years old. But it is Paris United who ultimately have youth on their side in the form of Youth Olympic Games gold medalist Tony Yoka, who is set to make his debut in the WSB at only 18 years old.

Memphis Force have chosen a strong side that includes world champion Detelin Dalakliev and Olympian Imre Szello for their home encounter against the Miami Gallos. Dalakliev will face Luis Miguel Diaz, who has moved up from light flyweight to compete in the WSB. Diaz' team-mate from the Dominican Republic, 2008 Olympian Roberto Navarro Gonzalez, will take to the ring in the lightweight contest against Raynell Williams.

In the provisional line-up for the Los Angeles Matadors v Mexico City Guerreros encounter on Sunday evening (final team deadline is 7.30pm tonight Pacific Time), Lamar Fenner will be the only international boxer representing the Guerreros as they travel to Los Angeles to face the Matadors. The Chicagoan will line up against the Ukraine's Vyacheslav Shabranskyy in the light heavyweight contest. Shabranskyy is one of two international boxers (the other being Everton Lopes from Brazil at lightweight) in action for the Matadors this weekend. Without their high-altitude home advantage, the Guerreros may experience a different kind of match, especially with double Olympian Rau'Shee Warren on the roster at bantamweight for the home side.

The middleweight contest at the Astana Arlans home match against Baku Fires has the makings of the bout of the week, since Kazakhstan's Olympic gold medalist Bakhyt Sarsekbayev will meet Mahamed Nurduzinau, the Belarussian who competed in the same weight category at the Beijing Olympics. Baku Fires' Deny Poyatsyka (light heavyweight) and Magomedrasul Medzhidov (heavyweight) will be looking for their first competitive action on Saturday after winning by walkover against the Beijing Dragons last weekend.

For their first away match, the Incheon Red Wings have chosen a strong side to face the Beijing Dragons at the Venetian Macao Resort on Saturday evening. 2008 Olympian Abdelhafid Benchabla will be one of two Algerian boxers competing in the top weight categories. Another Olympian, Andranik Hakobyan from Armenia, will be facing the Dragons' only international boxer in action this weekend, Brazil's Pedro Lima, in the middleweight contest.

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Team lists for week 2 of the 2010-2011 regular season

EUROPE