French boxer Sofiane Oumiha (-63.5 kg) won his first European title on Saturday in Krakow (Poland) in the final of the European Games.
Aged 28, the Toulousain, with an already well-established track record (three-time lightweight world champion, Olympic vice-champion in Rio in 2016) had never won a European gold medal. “I had this very specific goal in mind, I always lost in the finals of these Games (European in 2015 then in 2019, editor’s note) and I was keen to do well,” he explained.
Oumiha, who had validated her qualification for the Paris-2024 Olympic Games on Wednesday by reaching the semi-final of the tournament, remained focused on the rest of her tournament. In the final, against Georgian Lasha Guruli, he boxed technically and quickly, winning all three times.
A few minutes before Oumiha, Billal Bennama, 25, also won his fight in the final. And the Blues have qualified seven athletes for Paris-2024, including former Olympic champion Estelle Mossely. On Saturday, Wassila Lkhadiri (-50 kg), Amina Zidane (-57 kg) and Davina Michel (-75 kg) will also fight for gold.
