Everton in publicity photo
Nimble welterweight boxer Everton Lopes dos Santos became the first-ever world amateur boxing champion from Brazil this past Saturday in Baku, Azerbaijan, beating Ukraine’s Denis Berinchyk by a score of 26 to 23.
On Brazil’s Sportv television channel, the fighter from the state of Bahia reminisced about the hurdles he lept on his way to winning the medal – washing cars for a living at 3 reais per vehicle, also selling orange juice the whole day before heading to training. He also addressed his strategy for winning the final.
“We discussed what I should do and agreed that I should go on the attack in the first round and take the lead on the scorecards. Then I just had to control the action in the second and third to keep the lead. It worked,” recounted the champion. Now Everton will be training for the London Games in 2012.
Another Brazilian who shined at the world championship was Esquiva Florentino Falcão, who took bronze at middleweight. Before Saturday, Brazil only held one medal at a amateur boxing world championship, José Rodrigues’s bronze in 1986.
Watch Everton fighting for the gold here.
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