• 
• 

Published on February 3, 2008

The finals were seemingly less significant as  success in the last four meant the finalists had already clinched berths in the Beijing Olympic.

Athens Olympic heroes Manus Boonjumnong and Worapoj Petchkum as well as wushu exponent-turned-boxer Angkarn Chomphuphoung on Friday made a clean sweep for the hosts to add three more spots to the five they bagged at the World Championship in Chicago last year.

The Thai team's joy over their achievement turned slightly sour in the finals, with Athens Olympic silver medalist Worapoj losing.

Bantamweight Worapoj was unable to repeat the form that helped him overcome his old foe Joan Tipon of the Philippines in the semi-finals and went down 21-11 to India's Akhil Kumar.

Worapoj was second best to the Indian throughout the bout.  Heading into the fight with confidence after sweeping aside his opponents in the last four, Kumar put up a good fight.

The Indian, however, made a sluggish start as he trailed the home fighter 3-2 at the end of the opening round. But in the next round, Kumar got into his stride and managed to tie the bout at 7-7 before storming into a 14-10 lead following excellent exploits in the third session. In the final round, the visitor posted an excellent 7-1 run with a flurry of precise straight rights to cruise to a comfortable win.

"I still feel satisfied with my performance. I already achieved my main goal in the tournament and that was to book a ticket in Beijing," Worapoj said.

Light welterweight Manus quickly lifted the spirits of the home crowd after taming China's Qiong Maimai-tituersun. Manus was able to afford a point deduction in the final session and strolled to a comfortable 19-7 victory.

"Today was like a dress rehearsal as I think we could meet again in the Games. I'm happy with my form. This win gave a huge boost to my confidence,"  he said.

Manus, who has a history of disciplinary problems, said what happened in the past would not repeat as he was determined to retain his Beijing title.

Middleweight Angkarn did not break into a sweat in his bout against Rasullov Elshod of Uzbekistan after the Doha Asian Games champion sustained a shoulder injury that forced him to retire.

The Nation